Out For Blood
by Dragonmuse
Summary: A young Uchiha must flee Konoha when Shimura Danzo comes to take what is hers. Her father's summons aid her in taking refuge in a foreign magical community where the loss of her bloodline ability and inability to trust those around her stands in the way of gaining the strength to kill those that destroyed her family. OC, Uchiha Sasuke, Severus Snape, Harry Potter, Draco Malfoy, etc
1. Sayuri

It had been more than a year since Akahane Sayuri had last seen her father. He'd taken her to visit his best friend, Itachi, and Itachi's little brother, Sasuke. It was memorable, because it was the first time tou-san had introduced her to someone from his family.

They looked very much like her and tou-san, with black hair and eyes. Itachi was soft spoken and kind with warm flickery chakra, like tou-san. Sasuke had pouted and clung to Itachi's leg as the older boy smilingly poked at her forehead. They all ended up going out for dango together, Sasuke and Sayuri getting piggyback rides from their favorite people. It was nice, as far as memories go.

It had been more than a year since the day her father's body was found in the Naka river with his eyes gouged out, and the rest of the Uchiha clan slaughtered soon after.

She slumped down in her seat at the academy and frowned. Sensei's voice buzzed in the background, probably giving an assignment but whatever. All girls had to attend kunoichi classes and she wasn't impressed.

Different ages of girls met for a combined class at the end of the school day, which meant that Sayuri was among the youngest in the room. One year ahead of her was a shy Hyuuga girl, an exuberant pink haired girl, and a golden haired Yamanaka. Sayuri recognized the latter from the flower shop, and of course she was already the best at flower arranging.

"We covered the meanings of different flowers last week," Yumiko-sensei said. "Today we will cover ways a message can be secretly relayed using those meanings in a flower arrangement. Each of you will start with the basics and create a piece that expresses sweetness and purity."

Sayuri blinked at the array of cut flowers before them. The scents mingled and itched in her nose. Lilies meant purity, right? She grabbed some little orange lilies, much better than boring white ones. Besides, those were the lilies she'd been named after. Sayuri, the small lily.

Next was a handful of hibiscus. The last one had a whole bunch of good meanings so that should cover sweetness. While she struggled to arrange them in a pleasing fashion, the Yamanaka peered over her shoulder. "The orange lilies are pretty, but they actually mean hatred and revenge. White ones are purity."

Suddenly feeling stupid, Sayuri nodded. "Oh, uh, thanks. Their smells don't really go together anyway." She frowned at the flowers haphazardly stuck into the arrangement and pulled out all the orange blooms. Who thought up these flower meanings anyway? Orange lilies should mean something positive instead like _'badass'_, or _'beautiful'_, or even_ '_p_ineapples are the tastiest fruit'._

Her stomach growled. She looked longingly at the clock.

"Ino-pig! Who said you could boss around the younger girls?" the pink haired girl huffed indignantly.

"Nobody is bossing her, Giant Forehead. I'm just giving advice."

_Good advice too_, Sayuri thought. Even if she didn't like it. Anything that saved her from having to spend more time than necessary on these tedious assignments was okay in her book.

The two girls' spat quickly devolved into an argument over who was going to marry Sasuke, their chakra prickling at each other as they quietly hissed insults back and forth while sensei was helping the other students. Sayuri suspected the teacher knew exactly what they were doing and just didn't care anymore.

After class, the blond girl turned to her and smiled sweetly. "My name is Ino. Do you want to come over to the flower shop some time? We like to get a group together and study there."

"Oh. I uh, I'll have to ask my mom," she stammered.

"Okay, see you tomorrow. Remember to ask!"

Ino and the other girls funneled off into separate groups to walk home, go out to eat, or harass Sasuke. Peering through the crowd for her mother's red hair, she easily picked out the familiar radiant chakra from the other parents before actually seeing her. With a sigh of relief she shouldered her bag and jogged to meet her.

"Sayuri-chan!"

"Mom!"

She basked in the warm hug, enjoying the way mom's chakra always felt like being wrapped in a toasty blanket.

"We need to hurry home. There's some food in the oven and I can't leave it too long."

Hand in hand they walked the three blocks to their apartment. She looked forward to seeing her little white cat once they got home. She pondered Ino's offer. Mom didn't really want her hanging out with other kids, but maybe she would say yes if it was for school.

The apartment complex was clean and painted with bright, fresh colors. Flowers cascaded heavily over the sides of hanging planters on the balcony of the neighboring unit.

Her mouth watered involuntarily at the smell of roasting fish that hit her when the front door was opened. She set her bag down.

"Fukumaru! I'm home!"

There wasn't any answer. No chirpy cat noises, no rubbing on her shins and trying to trip her. She frowned, because Fukumaru always greeted her after school. And he especially wouldn't leave if there was roast fish in the oven. She cast her chakra out as she searched from room to room, calling his name.

But he really was gone.

Sayuri dashed into the kitchen where her mother was slicing some vegetables."Mom! Where's Fukumaru? He's not inside."

"Hmm, are you sure you checked everywhere?"

"YES!"

"Well maybe he's playing on the neighbor's balcony."

"But I don't feel him anywhere!" she wailed, and dashed out the front door.

Heart pounding, she forced herself to slow down to a walk outside so she wouldn't miss him. She paused to ask everyone she passed by if they'd seen a little white cat with a red collar. Nobody had, except one old man.

"I saw a white cat about 5 minutes ago. A dog chased him down that street."

"Oh no! Thank you mister!" She had to find him before something bad happened. He was just a normal cat. What if a nin dog was chasing him? What if he was injured? Or worse? He wouldn't be able to climb a tree and escape if it was a nin dog.

Fighting down the rising panic, she zigzagged through the streets following the directions of kind folks who kept her going on the right path.

Finally she could see Fukumaru nearing the Naka river bridge. A big brown dog was snarling and snapping at his legs as it pursued him. Shaking, she put on a burst of speed to close the distance between them. The dog lunged sideways, catching the little cat in its jaws for a moment before his tiny body was slung over the side of the bridge into the dark roiling currents below.

"FUKUMARU!" she shrieked. Eyes burning with tears that streaked into the wind and dissolved into the frigid water, she dove in after him. The pressure of the water pushed her down, swept her along as she desperately searched. She couldn't feel him.

_She couldn't feel him._

Her lungs ached, and she realized she couldn't tell which way was up anymore. Thrashing, reaching out for anything solid her fingers just slid through the dark water over and over while it roared in her ears and pounded her into unseen obstacles. Suddenly, a flash of light blue darted past.

Then another smaller flash.

Sayuri tried snatching the next light, and was surprised to feel the slick body of a trout squeeze through her fingers. Eyes widening, she tried to take in more of her surroundings under the dark and swirling current.

There.

Just ahead was a blue light flickering, swirling, too big and potato shaped to be a trout. Kicking her feet she let the river carry her ahead until she was close enough to grab it, and had a handful of white fur. Another big kick and she managed to reach a branch dipping into the river, and pull her only friend out of the river.

* * *

Akahane Hibari had just finished preparing dinner and was wondering where her daughter had gotten to, when she heard frantic running up the stairs to their landing.

The door flung open wide, Sayuri gasping for breath. Worried, Hibari met her in the doorway to find her soaking wet child clutching a limp white cat, staring at her with tears streaming from blood red eyes.

"Mom! You have to save him!" Her voice cracked. "Please he's so cold!"

Without thinking, she grabbed Sayuri's arm and yanked her inside. The door slammed behind them. She rushed them both to the bath, turning the hot water on full blast.

"Get in!"

"Mom he's-"

"I said get in! Keep holding Fukumaru and keep his head above the water. This is the fastest way to bring his temperature up."

Sniffling, Sayuri sat cross legged in the tub fully clothed and supported the little cat. He was still breathing at least. Hibari crouched next to him, running a glowing green hand over the animal.

"Turn him on his back so I can draw the water out of his lungs," she said. Sayuri obediently maneuvered him, while her mother sent a chakra probe down his throat to draw out the river water.

It was cleared quickly, and after being submerged up to his neck in the warm water for several minutes he began to purr again.

After the danger was over and both of them thoroughly warmed, both Sayuri and Fukumaru were bundled together inside a puffy blanket. Sayuri clutched a steaming cup of green tea. Fukumaru nibbled on a piece of grilled fish.

Her daughters eyes were no longer that blighted red. Hibari swallowed anxiously. How many people had seen? Or rather, _who_ had seen?

Why did Sayuri have to inherit that damned curse? Shisui wouldn't have had to hide them from the clan if it weren't for those fucking eyes.

He wouldn't have been killed.

She'd hoped that by keeping Sayuri out of dangerous situations and from making close friends with anyone else who might be put in jeopardy, she'd never have the chance to awaken it. But it looked like even keeping a beloved pet was too much. She sighed in defeat.

"Sweety, I'm going to keep you home tomorrow so you don't catch cold. You need the rest."

"Aww, but mom tomorrow they're going over the henge jutsu. And don't you have to work?"

"It's all right. I'll just let the hospital know I won't be coming in tomorrow. You can study out of your textbook while you recover."

"If I was on a mission I wouldn't have a blanket, hot bath, and tea," she grumbled. "I need to push myself if I'm going to be a shinobi."

"If you were on a mission you would already know how to endure swimming in cold rivers safely," Hibari scolded. "You're only eight years old."

"Itachi-san was going on dangerous missions when he was 8 years old."

Hibari's eyes narrowed and her voice became cold. "And just look what became of him."

* * *

**Author's Note:** I decided to take down the old version of this story and completely revamp it from scratch. It's going to be mostly following this Uchiha OC from Konoha. Much of the story will take place in the wizarding world, with prominent roles from lots of characters in both worlds. Sayuri's choices will affect both worlds so that's going to cause changes to them. She's not going to morph into a super OP god-like rinnegan user super saiyan type of character or completely usurp any of the main character's roles in their own stories even though the arcs will be different, meaning she won't become a Harry, Naruto, or Sasuke stand in.

Part of the reason I'm writing this is to just play around and relax. Another reason is because I had a severe concussion a couple of years ago which really affected my ability to write. I'm still planning to finish my other story, Dog Ninja, but feel like my writing style isn't up to what it used to so want to try and practice writing and storytelling for a bit and try to get back what was lost so that fic doesn't get too badly messed up. If anyone wants to follow along and let me know what they think, welcome and I hope I can make this worth your time.

**Second Author's Note:** I made some tweaks to the first chapter and uploaded the new version. This revised name for the main character makes more sense to me in the long run.

And, question time! Who is your all time favorite character from Harry Potter, and your all time favorite from Naruto? Personally, I have a hard time picking but Snape is up there along with Hagrid. From Naruto, probably Kakashi, Jiraiya, and Kankuro.


	2. Fatal Mistakes

Sayuri stared into the mirror with her mother hovering over her shoulder. She was close enough to it, her breath kept fogging up the glass. Blood red eyes that were a close match to her mother's hair stared back at her, two tomoe in the left, one tomoe in the right.

"Turn it off now," mom commanded." Sayuri blinked her eyes, letting the chakra dissipate which turned them black again.

"Now turn them on," she said

"Mom, can I please stop? I get it now. No using these eyes. No turning them on. No showing them to anyone."

"No, you have to keep practicing. You have to absolutely know what it feels like when they are even _thinking_ about activating and_ never_ allow it to happen. It's just lucky that you didn't activate them at school during a spar."

Sayuri sighed deeply. "Can I at least take a break and brush my hair? It's a huge mess and I've been having to stare at it for hours."

Her mother pursed her lips and eyed her critically. "Fine. I'll get some lunch together while you clean up. You're not going back to school until I'm satisfied you won't accidentally activate them."

_Finally some relief_. Sayuri picked up a wooden comb and began pulling it through her spiky unkempt locks of hair. It was only chin length, but she wondered if it would be prettier grown out. Maybe the spikes would lay a little flatter with more weight anway. She splashed a bit of water on her head and experimentally flattened it with the comb. If it was longer then she could do braids, or a bun.

Her mother was a mess today. She hadn't seen mom this stressed since they'd first heard about the massacre.

Since tou-san had died.

"Sayuri, come eat your onigiri," mom called.

"Yes mother." Sayuri set the comb down reluctantly, hoping she'd be allowed to return to school tomorrow. Fukumaru purred and rubbed against her shins. She stooped and gathered him into her arms.

"Time for lunch little bro."

He blinked at her with wide innocent golden eyes and she rubbed her nose on his tummy fur. Why was her cat so ridiculously cute?

* * *

Two days passed before mom was comfortable sending her back to the academy, and the second day was a Friday so she had to wait until after the weekend. She'd missed a bunch of the theory behind the henge jutsu while she was out, so had a lot of catch up reading to do anyway.

That Monday, she ignored the curious stares of her classmates as she entered the classroom. Paid studious attention to their sensei. Managed to create a passable henge. Sure it was missing a few details in the clothing so wouldn't have worked on a real mission, but it was a step in the right direction.

During lunch break the usual girls sought out Sasuke, vying for his attention. Inviting him to sit with them. Presenting him with sweets. He brushed them off, somehow managing to evade them long enough to eat. Or did he even eat? His gloomy chakra betrayed the loneliness he tried to play off with a cool attitude. She hadn't really paid attention to him before the massacre to know how much it had changed. Back then he was just another at the academy that she'd met one time.

But, now he had no mom sending lunches to school for him. No father to teach him, and a cold empty home to return to.

As far as Sasuke knew, he was the only Uchiha left in Konoha.

A pang of sadness washed over her. She didn't know if he even remembered her from that one lunch. Or if he'd even realized back then that they were cousins, he was so preoccupied with competing for Itachi's attention.

She regretted that hasty promise to her mother, not to reveal her eyes to anyone. Even if he didn't want to be her friend, maybe he would feel better knowing someone else survived. That someone else missed their father too. That someone else cared.

Who would even find out if she did? She brightened up at the thought. Sasuke seemed like the type to keep a secret. He definitely didn't bother making friends at school. And she was pretty good at sensing people, so she could make sure they were alone. She just needed to make it clear that her being an Uchiha had to stay secret. At least for now.

First she had to figure out how to track him down though. Without mom realizing. Sasuke was pretty evasive considering how thoroughly he managed to avoid the other female students every afternoon, which meant that step one was to memorize his chakra signature

* * *

"Sasuke-kun!" Ino called obnoxiously. "I brought you some dango! Where are you?"

Sakura elbowed the blond girl sideways, " Sasuke-kun, I brought you something better!"

Perched high in a tree, Sasuke scowled at the girls down below. Dango just made him think of _that man_. A pang of rage lanced through him. Why were all the girls in his class so damn annoying?

Channeling chakra to his legs, he bounded through the treetops viciously lashing out at stray branches with his kunai. Damned Itachi. His memory had even ruined dango.

Sasuke didn't stop until he reached the banks of the Naka river. Seeing no one around, he dropped to a grassy spot on the bank and sighed. His peace didn't last long though. Yet another annoying girl showed up. This one was younger than his classmates, with a mess of black hair. She started toward him. He was pretty sure she'd begun stalking him a few weeks ago.

Why wouldn't they just leave him in peace?

He got up to leave.

"Sasuke-san, wait!" she called. "I need to talk to you!"

That cemented it. He was definitely going to have nothing to do with this new girl. He flew back into the trees and shot ahead, intent on losing her completely. Unfortunately, the girl followed. He'd just have to lose her no matter what.

* * *

Sayuri mentally smacked herself in the face for calling out to him like that. After almost a month of gathering information on his habits, she had been prepared for complete rejection and evasion. But could she have sounded more like an obsessed stalker? Then again she couldn't have exactly called out, _hey I'm an Uchiha too! _

Though, she hadn't sensed anyone else around so maybe she should have. It was just her and Sasuke, though sometimes there was an odd fuzziness around him. She couldn't quite place it. Maybe it was some property of his chakra. Sometimes it crackled and was distinctly thunderous, so maybe it could buzz too?

He was putting some distance between them, but she didn't put a lot of energy into pursuing right away since she wasn't worried about losing him. Once he thought he'd lost her he'd stop to rest again.

It happened sooner than she expected. This time, she withdrew her chakra and tamped it down, masking it as well as she could before silently approaching him near one of the unused training grounds. Luckily he'd gone out of his way to avoid people so he was still alone.

When she was about ten meters away, his brow furrowed and he glared in her direction. "Stop following me. You're annoying."

Instead of speaking, she activated her sharingan and stepped into the open. They stared each other down. His anger melted into disbelief.

"That's impossible," he whispered.

"Sasuke-san, I just wanted to tell you that you're not the only one. You're not alone," Sayuri took a hesitant step closer.

The boy wavered for a moment, then stumbled over to where she stood. He gripped her shoulders tightly, dark eyes staring into hers before he crushed her in a hug.

"How?" he whispered hoarsely. "How are you alive?"

"Do you remember when we met before?" she asked softly. "You and your brother were the only ones my father ever introduced me to, so I was never put on the clan rolls."

His arms trembled a little as he squeezed.

"My father was Uchiha Shisui," she whispered. There was a sharp intake of breath in her ear. He pulled back and stared at her face in disbelief.

"I remember, we were so little," he said. "I didn't see you again after that one time, so I thought you were gone like everyone else. They said everyone was dead."

Sayuri let her eyes deactivate. "Shisui kept me hidden because my mother is from outside the clan. They never married or lived together, but he spent as much time with me as he could in secret."

"You look like him," Sasuke said in a thick voice. "I'm so sorry. I'm so sorry _he_ took your father from you. I will _kill_ him. I won't ever let anyone hurt you."

"Sasuke," she said softly. "My mom says nobody can know about my eyes. To the village I am just Akahane Sayuri. But you, I just needed you to know. You aren't alone. Even if we don't eat lunch together, or have any classes together, or never talk to each other again. I'll always think of you, because you're the only part of my father I have left."

Sasuke wiped an arm across his eyes. "Thank you," he whispered. "I'll think of you too. But I'd like to talk again. Where do you live?"

"A few blocks from the academy," she said. "My mom has an apartment there. Hey do you like cats? I have a white cat named Fukumaru and his face is pretty cute."

"Can I meet him some time?"

"Yeah!" Sayuri said excitedly, and started to babble. "He has the cutest little pink toes. And, maybe my mom will be okay with you coming by some time. I'll try to ask her. She doesn't really like me spending time with other kids."

He gave her a watery smile. "I'd like that."

* * *

She sat on the steps outside the apartment, breathing in the scent of the neighbor's flowers. Talking about asking mom to have another kid over was one thing, but actually asking her was completely different. Sayuri chewed on her lip, wondering if she should be direct or if she should try and do it sneaky-like.

"Maybe I should just ask her to bring you along to pick me up tomorrow," she said to the purring cat on her lap. "Then he could meet you at least."

"So _who_ could meet _who_?" a sharp voice said above her.

She looked up sheepishly. Her mom was really good at masking her chakra sometimes. "No one. I mean, uh, one of the kids at school said he really likes cats and wanted to meet Fukumaru." She took hold of his little paw. "I mean, who wouldn't want to squeeze these little pink feet?"

Mom pinched the bridge of her nose. "I don't like you hanging out with the other kids you know."

"This isn't hanging out," she argued. "I'm forced to be around them in class, and if you brought Fukumaru to pick me up then they could just meet him at the school. I was going to ask if they could come over originally but I didn't think you'd like that."

Fukumaru going to school wasn't an ideal plan, but it was better than nothing. She just hoped they wouldn't be mugged by Sasuke's unwanted fan club.

A frustrated sound came out of mom's throat. "I _don't_ like people coming over here. But if it's just to see your cat, it's all right for a few minutes."

"Oh," she jumped up and threw her arms around mom. "Thank you!"

The next day she went off to the academy feeling light.

She and Sasuke had agreed to pretend not to know each other at school for now, though neither of them quite understood the danger her mom was worried about since Itachi was nowhere near Konoha. Either way, the important thing was that she'd gotten permission to bring him home after school.

At lunch she took a wadded up note, and pretended to approach him about eating together so she could slip him the paper. He went through his usual avoidance routine to throw off his fan club while the note was passed off. Sayuri pretended to be downtrodden after he body flickered off to his hiding spot, but on the inside she was giddy with happiness. That afternoon she set off for home on her own. Sasuke would throw the other girls off his trail before doubling back to her mom's apartment. He appeared beside her suddenly as she was climbing the stairs. His chakra was buzzing today.

"I'm so nervous," she said. "Mom's never let me have someone to the house before."

"Don't worry," Sasuke said. "She gave you permission."

She nodded and took a calming breath. "Right. It's okay."

As usual, Fukumaru greeted her at the door. She scooped him up and handed him to Sasuke. The cat purred and rubbed his forehead under Sasuke's chin, almost making him smile.

"See, he likes you."

"Oh is that you Sayuri?" mom called. Mom stopped in the hallway when she saw Sayuri and the black haired boy with her.

"Uchiha Sasuke?" her mom whispered. "Is that you?"

"Yes ma'am," Sasuke said bowing with his arms around the cat.

"Get out of my house," she said in a dangerous whisper. "You're not welcome here. And you stay away from my daughter. The Uchiha clan is cursed. I _won't_ let you bring that curse down on her. You will never speak to or look at her ever again."

Sasuke's face had gone strangely blank. The corner of his mouth trembled like he was fighting to keep it neutral. His arms went slack and Fukumaru jumped down.

"Sorry," he managed to mutter, and just like that he vanished as if he had never been there.

"Mom," Sayuri stared at the spot he'd just been standing in disbelief. "_Mom_, how could you say that to him? That, it was horrible. He doesn't have anyone, and you just threw him out after saying those things!"

"I do what I need to protect you," mom hissed, her red hair whipping around her as she turned to go back to the kitchen.

"Well, maybe I don't want to be protected," Sayuri said, her clenched fists shaking. "I, I really hate you!"

Mom glared over her shoulder. "Go to your room."

Sayuri opened the door and shifted her weight to spring off the balcony, but her mother caught her arm first. "I said go to your room you ungrateful brat,"she snapped, and instead of slipping away Sayuri was dragged down the hallway and thrown into a dark shuttered room. "If you do something like that ever again, you will be pulled out of the academy and sent to a civilian school," she growled, then slammed the door behind her.

_It wasn't fair!_

Sayuri fought the urge to kick the door. That'd just make mom even more mad. She went and tried the window, but like usual it was stuck tight with a security seal. Sasuke was out there somewhere feeling horrible, because her horrible mother had said horrible things to him. She needed to find a way out to go talk to him before things got worse.

She tried the regular door, which was sealed tight as well. Briefly she considered chipping a hole through the wall with her kunai, but with how thorough the seals on the room were already mom probably had her basically jailed in a cube of chakra. And she didn't even have Fukumaru to keep her company this time.

* * *

Akahane Hibari went around the apartment, reinforcing the privacy seals she'd put on all the windows and double checked the security seals. She sat on the couch, trying to get her breathing under control, then jumped up and checked the seals again.

Of all the boys in Konoha, why did Sayuri have to bring _that_ boy home? Why couldn't it a boy from a nice civilian family? Or an Akimichi? They didn't have any enemies. Her panic gave way to anger. Sayuri must have deliberately sought him out after what happened to her eyes.

She had to prepare, just in case. With a frown, she reached a hand into their goldfish tank and pulled out a little flat rock with a storage seal underneath. It was a tidy little seal, not visible until someone applied chakra to it. Inside was her personal collection of fuuinjutsu scrolls that Sayuri's grandmother had smuggled out of Uzu when that village had been brutally destroyed, among other things. She opened the seal to check the provisions inside, and pulled out a small glass vial of red liquid.

Maybe they should just leave tonight. Konoha wasn't a safe place for a little girl with the sharingan. But then again, there was no safe place in this wretched world to raise a child like Sayuri. She wiped her hands across her eyes. She hardly remembered Uzu, but she did remember her father and the sacrifice he made to get his family to safety.

She had to be prepared to do the same for Sayuri. Because whatever the official story about Shisui and Itachi was, she didn't believe Itachi murdered him. Shisui couldn't tell her anything specific, but made it clear that she should trust neither the Uchiha elders nor the leadership in Konoha. And now he was gone. Just like her own father.

Something sharp pricked her skin.

Startled, she glanced at her arm and brushed a tiny black insect off of it. She stood to get some food for Sayuri, when purple blotches blossomed across her arm. Frowning, she took a step and her legs collapsed. Her eyes focused on a tiny black beetle perched on her limp hand. Muscles clenched and stiffened painfully, interfering with her breathing.

_It's some kind of paralytic poison. How? _She tried to stand and started coughing, bitter foam spilling over her chin. _This is like those poisoning cases at the hospital, _she panicked as the blotches spread. A blurred figure stood over her, his face obscured by a black mask with white circles for eyes.

"Get the girl quickly," he said. "The child must witness her mother's death before we extract her eyes."

Sayuri's scream ripped through the air, and mentally Hibari cursed the privacy seals she'd kept active. Nobody would hear them. Nobody would come and help. The intruders figured out some way to get through the security seals on the apartment, which meant they'd gotten into the room.

_How?_

_Move,_ she willed, staring at her hand. _Move damn it!_ If she could reach the vial in her pocket, she might be able to get Sayuri out of here. Jerkily, it lurched into the front pocket of her apron. Her fingers closed around it, crushing the glass until the shards cut deep into her hand releasing the liquid inside. She took a deep breath and began focusing her chakra so she could save her daughter.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

In this chapter, Sayuri is 8 and Sasuke is 9. That's three years before he graduated, and at that age I picture him still having a tiny bit of his little cinnamon roll goodness left before he became completely emo. It just took discovering the survival of a clan member to bring it out.

**Question Time:** What's your favorite pastry? I like melitinias. They're sort of like if you combined baklava, a cookie, and cheesecake. SO. FRIGGIN. DELICIOUS.


	3. Taiyou no Yama

Sayuri sat with her back against the wall, hugging her knees. It was hard to tell through the seals, but something was off. The buzzing she associated with Sasuke was back. The messed up thing was the rest of his chakra was missing, yet the buzz was much stronger than she'd ever felt it.

Something was very wrong.

She blinked, letting chakra bleed into her eyes. All points of entry to her room glowed golden around the edges, and the walls themselves had a chakra latticework crisscrossing through them. Purple specks appeared around the edges of the door. The buzzing feeling grew stronger as the purple became brighter. The seal was weakening. Almost like it was being absorbed.

Or its chakra source was being cut off.

"Mom?" she whimpered. Cautiously she crept up to the door, and saw little black bugs struggling against the seal to get through the gaps around the door frame.

Why so many? And where was mom? Mom hated bugs.

Sayuri pulled our her kunai. If their apartment was full of bugs, and the seals were weakening that meant something was very wrong with mom. She had to do something, but was trapped inside until the bugs destroyed the seal.

Slipping through the necessary handseals, she cast a henge to look like a houseplant on her desk. Then molded her chakra for a katon jutsu as best she could without dropping the henge.

It didn't take long for beetles to flood through the cracks of the door. The doorknob rattled, and hinges creaked as it swung open. The silhouette of a man stood in the doorway.

Sayuri released the henge at that moment.

Her kunai sailed straight through the doorway, forcing him to move. Her hands formed the seals for katon as soon as they were empty. Buzzing chakra rang loudly in her ears, her eyes followed the human shaped violet trail and she blew a fireball exactly where it couldn't be avoided.

It struck perfectly. A clone dispelled with a poof.

Thousands of tiny insect bodies evaporated into ash.

Sayuri threw herself out into the hallway. A sharp, cold pain lanced through her midsection. So cold, but burning at the same time.

"We're almost too late, it took too long to break the seal," a man's voice said.

"You underestimated her fuuinjutsu," said a dry voice behind her. His chakra was indistinct at first, but felt hungry.

And dark.

Sayuri's breath hitched as something, a blade, was yanked from her midsection from behind. Trembling, she looked down at her hands. They were slippery and warm. So red.

She tore her gaze from her hands, and almost didn't recognize the blotched purple body on the floor as her mother. A thin stream of foam trickled from mom's slack mouth. She couldn't feel her presence. Tears stung Sayuri's eyes. She didn't want to see any of this.

"Either way," the man behind her said. "Another set of mangekyou would have been nice, but I will settle for these sharingan." A rough hand tilted her head back sharply, and she stared into an old man's face. A face that was saturated in hungry chakra, except for a cool green glow pulsating under the bandages on the right side of his face. His upside down smile looked like a frown. "That Itachi went back on our agreement. But, your eyes have all their tomoe now at least."

Thick fingers dove into one eye socket. The second eye was ripped away from her before the scream left her throat.

"Mom! I can't see!" Her mother's chakra flickered like a candle in the wind. "Help me!"

A flare of golden chakra filled the room along with a new, enormous presence. Sayuri fell to the floor, and reached toward the dying flare of chakra marking her mother. She choked on a sob, groping the darkness for mom's hand.

"Please don't die," she sobbed. "I'm sorry."

The giant presence snatched her. Hot breath gusted around her entire body. She was surrounded by warmth and wetness, when everything spun and turned inside out.

After that, only silence.

* * *

Sasuke was alone again.

He wiped his eyes on his forearm protector. He would never admit to crying over what Sayuri's mother had said to him. She was right anyway. Everyone he cared about died or betrayed him. That's what a curse was, right? It would be better not to endanger Sayuri like that, because he cared.

_Damn it._

At least, she would think of him. She promised to. He decided he had to stop thinking about her though, because of the curse. If he tried not to care about her, maybe she would be spared somehow. It had felt a little less lonely than before he knew about her but it wasn't his destiny to have any friends or a family after all.

Something white flashed by his peripheral vision in the distance. Frantic cat paws pounded down the street making no effort to be stealthy. He knew when a cat was upset, because of the sound it made when they ran with their claws out.

The black and white cat changed direction and bounded toward him.

He squinted. No, it was muddy or something the way the fur was messed up.

"Mrrrooow!" the cat screeched. It skidded to a stop before him, shaking uncontrollably.

"Fukumaru?" he asked. Then the unmistakable smell hit his nose.

Blood.

"He picked the cat up, freshly clotted blood staining his hands. "Are you hurt? What happened?"

The cat meowed again and struggled until he let go. It landed neatly on the floor and stared at him, tail lashing. Familiar dread knotted up inside him and weighted him down like a stone.

"Where's Sayuri? Is she hurt?"

The cat yowled again, and bounded off turning to look at him expectantly until he followed. He wished he had a set of those cat ears that Nekobaa used to understand cat language.

Sayuri's mom would be really angry if she saw him again, but that didn't matter right now because he'd made a promise. He promised to protect her.

"Fukumaru, take me to Sayuri-chan!"

* * *

Over one hundred crows were perched all around the massive stick nest of the crow sage, Yatagarasu. The nest itself was cradled among the tops of gargantuan pines. From a distance it looked to be made of small branches laid together, but once inside they appeared to be massive logs fit for building a bridge. Moonlight illuminated their impromptu gathering.

"Yatagarasu-sama, what should we do?" cawed a one-eyed crow, large enough to ride on. She stood over the body of a human child, laid in the bottom of the nest.

A hulking shadow that blocked the moonlight was cast over the nest. "This one is Shisui's?" Yatagarasu croaked in a deep voice that echoed through the pines.

"Yes," she said.

"Then we will do our best." He angled his expansive head toward a small crow with a single blood red eye. "Itachi asked to be notified if something like this happens."

"Yes, Yatagarasu-sama!" the bird chirped. A poof of smoke appeared in the nest, clearing to reveal a somber black haired man in black and red robes.

"Itachi-kun," the sage began. "Something has happened to Shisui's child."

The shinobi stared down at the limp body of the little girl. "She's still alive," he deadpanned. "How did this happen?"

"Her mother must have kept some of Shisui's blood, and used that to summon me." The one eyed crow explained. "When I appeared the woman was dying, and the child was like this. There was a poison bug user present, and a man with Shisui's stolen eye. I snatched her and left."

The first sign emotion slipped onto his face in the form of a frown. Itachi crouched next to her and placed a cool hand on her forehead.

"I got this from the woman as well," the bird reported. She made an exaggerated bobbing motion with her head, and brought up a small flat stone from her throat. She placed it near Itachi. "Feels like there's a seal on it."

Itachi probed it with his chakra, and indeed there was a seal. And whoever Sayuri's mother was, she'd been well prepared. He removed a package of medical supplies from the seal.

"I am not a medinin, but I will do my best," Itachi said in a level voice. "She will need to stay here for a time. I want some crows to search out a safe place for her. Somewhere away from the elemental nations, but among other chakra users."

As he spoke, inky clouds of crows dispersed from their perches, already acting on his directions.

Itachi turned a somber gaze back onto the unconscious child. Danzo wasn't supposed to find out about her. If he'd taken her eyes, that meant she awakened her sharingan. He wondered if Sasuke had awoken his yet. If Sasuke knew about her. Rolling her onto her side, he lifted the back of her shirt high enough to apply the healing salve that had been packed for her. Then did the same for her front. Without a healer though, a puncture injury like that could go either way. She still might not make it.

His personal summon, Hassaku, landed near him and began pulling a roll of bandages from the kit. Itachi considered the consequences of implanting her father's eye to make up for the loss of her own, then dismissed it. He'd promised Shisui he'd keep both her and his remaining eye safe. If she had the kotoamatsukami, it would only put an enormous target on her. And it would be much easier for someone to take it from a child. Blindness was safer for everyone.

There were plenty of bandages to go around her head, which he wrapped snugly after cleaning her face. For a split second, her breathing shifted and she stirred.

"Tou-san?" she whispered. Itachi froze. He had to finish quickly and leave. She couldn't under any circumstances learn he had been here, or helped her. Luckily, she went slack again, breath slowing and deepening.

Once he'd done what he could, Hassaku flew to his outstretched arm and regarded him with Shisui's eye.

"Keep your distance if she wakes," Itachi instructed. "Shisui mentioned once he thought she might be a sensor type. We can't have her recognize this eye."

Hassaku croaked in the affirmative.

"Also, if she survives she should be offered a chance to sign a contract with the crows. It will be easier for me to look after her without others finding out."

"I will pass that to Yatagarasu-sama," the bird said.

Itachi nodded once, and in a puff of smoke returned to his bewildered Akatsuki partner.

* * *

Sayuri woke to complete darkness.

Gingerly she patted her face. Bandages were wrapped tightly around it. Wincing, she tried pushing herself upright and rolled onto her side.

The last thing she remembered seeing was those thick fingers, reaching, no _digging_ into her eyes. She patted the bandage again, trying to feel out the convex curve of her eyeballs through the fabric.

"Sorry to tell you, but they really are gone," a deep voice croaked up above.

"Who said that?" She jumped to her feet, then immediately regretted it as pain lanced through her and she sank back to the ground.

"My name is Tsuchibue," the voice said. "And you are a guest of the crows of Taiyou no Yama. Right now you are safe in my nest."

"Crows?" she asked. "Like, my dad's crows? How?"

"We knew that Shisui was gone," the voice said. "However, someone used his blood to summon one of us. He had prepared us for that possibility some time ago. The crow who answered assessed the situation, then brought you back here."

"But, my mom. Did you bring her too? She was dying!"

Sayuri felt something alight on her shoulder and start gently rearranging her hair. Its chakra was twirling and windswept.

"She was badly poisoned and could not take be taken by mouth." The harsh voice softened. "I am sorry."

Sayuri trembled and lay down flat. It was like a crushing weight was on her chest.

She couldn't breathe.

She couldn't see.

Mom was dead.


	4. On Their Own

Sasuke lay flat on his back, on the hard wooden floor in the dark of his apartment. He stared at the blackened ceiling, eyes unfocused. Raindrops clattered against the roof and beat his window.

His legs grew cold, but he didn't bother moving to the bed. There was no point.

What was the point in living if everyone he touched died? If he cursed everything he cared about with his presence?

The cold seeped into his arms. He let his eyes slide closed. They felt raw. He'd cried again, just like the night of the massacre. He'd been helpless again, just like that night. He was too weak to save anybody. Her mother was already dead when he arrived with Fukumaru, but the blood hadn't come from her okaa-san.

There was so much blood, but Sayuri's body was missing.

It didn't take long for the ANBU to arrive once he fled the apartment, screaming Sayuri's name and calling for help. A dog-masked ANBU soldier had removed him from the scene. A tiger masked ANBU questioned him, then brought him home. He hadn't mentioned her connection to the clan. Somehow, revealing her secret felt like a betrayal even though she was gone.

_I'm sorry, Sayuri-chan. I never should have spoke to you. _

The terrible notion that Itachi was somehow responsible, that this was _his_ fault, kept gnawing at Sasuke until he couldn't ignore it any more. If Itachi had learned about her, he might have returned to kill her.

Sasuke clenched his jaw, every muscle in his body tensing. What if Itachi was monitoring him somehow?

What if Itachi was monitoring him _right now?_

There would be a special torture just for that fucking bastard before he killed him. Itachi would suffer for their parents, for everyone, for Sayuri. He couldn't let himself stay the way he was. He _had_ to get stronger. Fast.

Sasuke bolted upright at something creaking. Fukumaru padded softly out of a dark corner, his white fur damp but no longer bloody.

"Oh, it's you," he muttered.

The cat slipped onto his cold lap and curled up.

"You can't stay here. You'll end up cursed too," Sasuke said with a frown. Fukumaru lashed his tail in response. Sasuke sighed, and rested a hand on the cat's shoulder. "I guess if you get hungry, I'll leave something out for you. But you're not my cat." He paused for a moment, then growled, "Did you hear that Itachi? He's not my cat. He's a stray now thanks to you, so don't fucking touch him."

Fukumaru stared at him through slitted yellow eyes and started purring. He crawled up Sasuke's chest to butt his head against the young shinobi's chin.

"Do you think she's really dead?" Sasuke asked him. "If she is, then maybe it's safe for me to think of her. And maybe, she'll think of me in the pure lands. Maybe she'll tell my parents how I'm doing, and they'll think of me too."

Too tired to stay upright, Sasuke lay flat on his back again. This time, a chubby white cat kept the cold at bay.

* * *

Not being able to see was extremely disorienting.

There was no sense of night and day aside from the frigid wind that traded places with the unbearable heat. She guessed Tsuchibue's nest was in an enormous tree by the way it swayed when the winds blew before the small flock of resident crows would land and roost around her for what felt like hours. Then once the wind stopped and the nest warmed, they'd fly away.

Today they left earlier than usual. She pushed herself upright and leaned against the rough bark lining the side of the nest. Their wings rustled, then silenced as they soared away.

She liked counting them, feeling out the subtle differences in their chakras. There were five aside from Tsuchibue. He told her they were his siblings, Nohkan, Shakuhachi, Ryuteki, Komabue, and Hocchiku.

Tsuchibue never left though.

"Hey, you need to get up early. Today's the day you start leaving the nest!" Tsuchibue cawed, pecking at her hair. "You can't live here forever."

She wrapped her arms even tighter around herself. "Is the sun even up yet? It's still freezing."

"It's getting there," he said. "And your wound is healed enough you should start moving again."

The thought of leaving hadn't occurred to her. She hadn't thought at all about the future, or even the present. Most of her thoughts were about the new darkness that enveloped her world. About the past.

About Fukumaru, and dad.

_And mom._

Panic gripped her. "Wait, where will I go? Can't I build my own nest and stay here with you?"

He clucked his tongue at her. "Of course not. You need other humans eventually."

She made a face. "Humans are the worst. Anyway, I definitely can't go back to Konoha."

Tsuchibue made a strange croaking sound that she'd come to associate with laughter. "They _are_ the worst, but you still need them. The other crows have been out searching for a suitable place for you."

"Oh." She wondered where, and hoped it would be far from any of the main shinobi villages. Somewhere nice and quiet. After it was safe, she could maybe send Sasuke a coded letter or something.

"Come on then. You need to practice climbing the trees using your other senses. Be ready for when it's time to go."

The crow encouraged her as she groped her way out of the nest, onto a monstrous branch that was probably 4 meters in diameter. "Exactly how high is your nest?" she asked.

"Oh, it's best not to think of that," he said. "I wouldn't know really. The tree itself is rather large, and then there's the cliff beneath it so it goes a long ways down."

_No problem_, she thought. _I'll just die if I step wrong. _Because as helpful as Tsuchibue was, he and his siblings weren't any size to carry a human.

"Don't worry about going fast," he said. "Use your other senses."

"Are there are rivers I could bathe in?" she asked. The crows hadn't complained. She assumed birds couldn't smell stuff very well, but after at least two weeks in the same clothes she was ready to burn them.

"Yes, down below. Let's make that your goal then! You need to sense your way down this tree and to the river."

Gingerly, she moved up the branch toward the trunk of the tree. The scent of pine filled her nose. A subtle presence loomed ahead, and she almost ran into the rough bark. The tree had chakra in it, but it was different than the developed chakra of an animal. It was more diffuse, bleeding into the air around the tree itself. Which made it difficult to know where the tree stopped an started, and where the next branch might be so she could safely jump.

Instead she hooked her fingers into the deep crags of the bark and began climbing backwards down the tree. Bit by bit.

Sticky pine resin quickly coated her hands and forearms. Bathing was going to suck. And she was going to end up covered in sap again by the time she returned to the nest.

Tsuchibue glided around her. She noted where he landed, especially when he moved below her, and steered toward those branches. Even with his guidance, she still hadn't made it to the ground by the time the cold winds picked up again.

Hugging the tree in alarm she called out, "Is it getting dark now?"

"The sun is setting," came the calm reply.

"Tsuchi-kun, how far to the ground?"

"Hmm, you're halfway down."

"But, what should I do? It's getting cold, and I haven't even eaten today."

"Ah, there's fish in the river. I'll stay with you," he said.

An unexpected pang went through Sayuri. Mom would have grilled some fish for her and wrapped her in a blanket with hot tea rather than let her be chilled.

But, mom wasn't here any more. This was the real world. Nobody was ever going to look after her like that ever again.

_She had no one._

"I need a better way to climb," she said. "This is too slow."

Wings rustled nearby. "Did Shisui ever show you how to stick to things with chakra?"

"No. We only learned using it to jump high and fast through the trees. And now I can't see where I'm going, so moving fast is out of the question."

"Well, a pine trunk grows in a straight line, so even being blind you could run fast up and down the trunk if you stick to it."

Sayuri's palms squelched as she stuck them together. "Who needs chakra when you have pine resin?" she grumbled.

The crow made that laughing sound again. "This is a more advanced kind of chakra control, but you might be able to get it under the circumstances." He then proceeded to explain how she needed to push chakra into the body part she wanted to stick, namely hands and feet.

Saying it took trial and error was an understatement. But, once she got her hands to stick, and then the toes of her shoes, climbing down went much, much quicker.

She didn't even lose _that_ much skin.

* * *

**Author's Note: **

**Tsuchibue means ocarina. He and his siblings are all named for different flutes. We'll see a bit of them later. **

**Are there any particular characters from either the ninja world or the wizard world that people want to see? **


	5. Fishing

Leaves tinged with yellow rustled far below Hassaku as he flew over the forest toward his summoner. Spiraling in descent, he flared his wings to slow his landing on Itachi's shoulder. The young shinobi and his human companion were both clothed in the black and red Akatsuki robes.

"See anything useful up there?" Juzo asked, scratching at his tattooed chin. The former mist swordsman flashed a smile full of unusually pointed teeth.

"_Aho! Aho!_" the crow cawed.

"Tch, I thought all summons were supposed to be intelligent enough to speak," he drawled, looking disappointed. Then he stood, casually slinging the monstrous executioner's blade over his shoulder. "I'm going on ahead to try and catch some lunch. Maybe a boar. Fish is getting old. We really need to talk to leader about getting a better food stipend for missions."

Itachi nodded once, inhaling through his nose. He waited in silence for his partner's presence to recede out of hearing range. "Report," he murmured.

"We located an isolated community of chakra users," Hassaku started. "Within their community, there is a small peaceful village in the mountains. Near the village is a school for their children, which Sayuri-chan is too young to enroll in. They appear to teach useful non combat skills, such as flight. Between the two places is a large forest similar to the Forest of Death. No humans were observed near the forest. This community is on a separate continent and the residents also speak an entirely different language which she would need to learn in order to communicate."

Itachi contemplated Hassaku's words. "Leave her in the forest."

The bird eyed him doubtfully. "I'm sure we could locate an adult willing to take her in."

"She won't grow to her full potential if she's coddled," Itachi said. "She'll eventually integrate with the local community."

"Are you certain Shisui would want-"

Itachi silenced the rest of the crow's question with a glare. Shisui knew that survival wasn't comfortable, and he'd asked Itachi to make sure Sayuri survived if anything happened to her mother. He began walking in the direction that Juzo had gone. "Keep her mother's stone safe in your nest for now. There is an entire library of scrolls sealed within it. Sayuri-san can't even read them."

"What about the food and other supplies in the seal?" he asked.

"As I said, coddling will only hinder her growth."

There was a very real possibility that in spite of losing her doujutsu and hiding her off continent, she would still be targeted for the bloodline she carried. His recent encounter with Orochimaru was a stark reminder of that. Or, if she and Sasuke were aware of one another, his younger brother could be in need of a capable ally at some point. One with deeper ties than were forged at the Academy.

If formal schooling for chakra users in that nation didn't even start until they were older, she needed to gain as many skills as she could before then.

The bird regarded him mistrustfully through Shisui's red mangekyou. "I see the wisdom in your plan, however, we reserve the right to provide assistance just as we do for all those who contract with us." Then with a puff of smoke, Hassaku returned to the crow's realm. A small smile twitched at the corner of Itachi's mouth. It went against a crow's nature to neglect one of their own, and they certainly considered her one of theirs now. If she hadn't signed the summoning contract yet, it was only a matter of time.

* * *

Once Sayuri reached the bottom of Tsuchibue's grand pine, she wedged herself into a wide crevice in the bark. Then she pulled an armload of dry pine needles over the top of herself to keep off the chill wind. Trying to bathe while it was this cold out was just asking for hypothermia. Her stomach growled angrily, so she chewed on a bit of pine pitch to stave off the sharp hunger pangs.

Seemingly satisfied that she wasn't out in the wind, Tsuchibue ruffled his wings. "You're fine for tonight," he told her. "I'm going to sleep up in my nest, but I'll be back in the morning." And with that, he caught a breeze and coasted away. Sayuri fought the panic that rose at his departure.

_It's fine,_ she told herself. _Just sleep, then when he gets back we'll catch some fish and maybe he'll let me use a katon to roast them instead of eating them raw like the ones they brought me before. _

She laid down, frowning to herself. There was a distant roar of churning water that reached her ears. The chakra of the tree surrounding her felt hazy and indistinct. And the chakra of the trees beyond it, exactly the same. She hugged herself and instantly missed the little round white cat that had always found a place in her arms while she slept. The prickling pine needles on her skin instead of a soft warm blanket were a stark reminder of the fact that her mother would never be there for her.

_Ever._

Drawing in a shaky breath, she tried to put the last images she'd ever seen out of her mind. The thick fingers reaching into her face. Her mother, blotched and purple.

It was a long night.

She must have dozed off at some point, because it was Tsuchibue's breezy presence that woke her. He flung something like a small rock at her. It bounced off her cheek. "Here, I found this on the way down. Eat it and then go catch your fish."

She groped through the pine needles, fingers closing on a smooth cylindrical nut. A pine nut, just, really large.

"Thanks!" she said, forcing herself to slow down and chew.

"No problem. Have to keep up your strength. The others found a place for you to live, so you need to get ready to be on your own."

"What?" she choked on the nut. "Where?"

"Away from the elemental nations," he cawed. "It's a nice forest, near a small village of chakra users."

That sounded kind of good actually. "Is it in the Land of Iron then? Are there any shinobi?"

"No, and I don't know," he said. "There's also a school for chakra-using children, but we didn't see them being taught anything to do with fighting. They learned to fly though!"

Flying! That sounded bad ass. Most shinobi couldn't even fly. "When do I leave?"

"Yatagarasu-sama wants to give you another week to build up your strength before you leave. And you'll need to sign our summoning contract if you want my help in the future."

"Oh! Of course!" She jumped up. "Tsuchi-kun, you're my only friend now. I need you. Can I sign it today?"

He made his laughing sound. "That depends on whether you can make it back up to the nest by nightfall."

"All right!" Sayuri said, walking toward the sound of churning water. "Let's do this!"

Tsuchibue hadn't bothered to mention that the river was actually a massive waterfall plummeting over the side of a bottomless cliff. Or what catching fish from it would entail. Which meant that most of her day was spent wasting chakra clinging to a slippery ledge jutting out behind the waterfall, completely drenched in chilly water.

_How am I supposed to catch a freaking fish like this? _she thought. The falls brutally pounded her arms as she held them outstretched, basically waiting for a fish to fall into them.

"Have you felt any fish yet?" Tsuchibue called.

"How can I feel anything when my whole body is numb?" she called through clenched teeth.

"Not with your hands you idiot," he snapped. "Use your chakra. The same way you climbed down from the trees. Don't think I didn't notice you stretching it out to find your way."

_If I even have any chakra left. _Sayuri stepped back from the torrent of water and leaned against the damp stone cliff, slick with algae against her back. She inhaled deeply through her nose, then on the exhale pushed her chakra out. Out into the stone, into the air among the water droplets misting around her. Into the falls, searching for something living among the dense crush of water.

Tsuchibue's chakra, pale and windy swirled on her shoulder. Behind her the algae glowed with a faint haze. Small insects dotted it like fireflies in her mind's eye. Turning her attention to the falls, she felt the cold water sluicing through the chakra she fed into it. This went on for several minutes, until a bright flash streaked by and was gone.

"I think one just went by," she murmured.

"Good," said Tsuchibue. "Now try and see further up the falls, so you have more warning next time."

She did as she was told, shaping it into thinner probes and stretching those higher through the water.

The longer she stretched her chakra into the water, the more she noticed about the falls. The way the water twirled and spiraled downward. The way it vibrated with its own subtle chakra, much deeper and softer than what she'd been used to sensing in the crows and shinobi of her home village. Before, it felt like everyone was sort of floating around in a void. This made her realize that everything, _everything_ around them had its own weight and force.

_How did I not feel this before?_

* * *

Three days passed before Sayuri caught enough fish to build up the strength to get back up the tree. In that time, she managed to grow some new skin to start replacing what she lost on the way down.

She hadn't managed to perfect roasting a fish with katon though. The best she could do was char the outside while leaving the middle raw and slimy. Still, crispy fish skin was better than slimy.

When she did get back up, Yatagarasu and the other crows were waiting. She could feel them ahead, clustered in the treetops with their chakra glowing like stars in her mind. Stars against a black night, and Yatagarasu's the brightest of all. His was like a small sun.

One of the crows, Komabue, nudged some folded cloth into her hands. "Go ahead and change," he said. "Your old ones are full of holes."

Grateful, she swapped out the shredded old top with the sword holes for one with long soft sleeves. She had no idea where the crows got it from, but figured it didn't matter much. Clothes were clothes. She pulled on a pair of leggings, wrapping a spare bandage around her thigh and replacing the ones over her eye sockets with a fresh blindfold.

When she finished, wind gusted over Sayuri just from Yatagarasu shifting his enormous wings.

"Sayuri-chan," he began, his deep voice hoarse with age. "I believe you are ready now. The river you visited was no ordinary river. The water is traditionally drank by those seeking to become sages. Doing so makes the drinker more sensitive to natural energy."

"Natural energy?" she asked wonderingly.

"Yes. Shinobi cultivate two types of energy within them. Physical, and spiritual. Those are combined to create what you call chakra. There is a third type found everywhere else in the world. In stones, trees, water, even the air we breathe. That is natural energy.

Those with large chakra reserves have the potential to accumulate and balance natural energy with the physical and spiritual, creating senjutsu chakra and become sages of incredible power.

But among the Uchiha clan none has ever had the chakra reserves necessary to become a sage. That includes you, child. However, many of our Uchiha summoners have come to drink the water to alleviate their blindness. You see, when their physical eyes failed, the water improved their ability to sense natural energy and thus navigate the world more easily."

"That's amazing, Yatagarasu-sama. But, I don't understand why so many Uchiha would go blind."

The giant bird's chakra stirred as he regarded her. "When an Uchiha awakens their sharingan, there is a possibility it can be further awakened. When an Uchiha experiences the loss of the person they cherish most, their eyes change yet again into the _mangekyou sharingan_. With this shift comes intense power beyond anything you could imagine. But like all curses, there is a cost even beyond losing that which they loved. The more the eye is used, the more quickly their eyesight will deteriorate. Even the great Uchiha Madara went blind."

"Uchiha Madara was blind like _me_?" she breathed, hardly believing what she was hearing. That meant there was hope. Maybe she _could_ get strong enough to retrieve her eyes one day. Maybe, she could get strong enough to avenge her parents.

"Yes," the ancient crow rumbled. "He was not always blind, and he did not stay that way, but his lack of sight did not significantly hinder him in leading the clan."

Sayuri bowed deeply before the crow. "Thank you for teaching me. And thank you for taking care of me."

There was a crinkle of parchment as a large scroll was unfurled in front of her. "You can repay us by signing this contract, and working hard to become an asset to the crows of Taiyou no Yama. We will be available to assist you if you call on us. I want to protect our investment in you, young Uchiha."

Sayuri knelt and bit her finger. The scrolled glowed with chakra, glowed with the blood of previous summoners.

Glowed with her father's blood.

The crow in charge of the scroll indicated where she should sign. She hesitated for a moment, conflicted by what name to use. She'd grown up Akahane, but that was only to keep her hidden. Her father was Uchiha Shisui. Yatagarasu-sama called her_ young Uchiha_. Carefully she marked her name.

_Uchiha Sayuri._

The scroll flared, then snapped closed. Celebratory cawing filled the air around her. Elated, she got to her feet just as a strange jerking sensation began in her naval.

Next thing she knew, there was an intense swirling, squeezing sensation. A poof of smoke surrounded her, and she collapsed on the ground.

"Ow," she grumbled. Her hand dug into soft, damp soil that smelled faintly of mushrooms. The chakra of a large crow loomed over her.

"Finally, it took you forever to sign the scroll."

"What, where am I?" she asked dazedly.

"This is the forest you'll be living in," she said cheerfully. "There's a lake nearby with plenty of fish. A village the other direction you could steal supplies from if you need. Just watch out because there are some pretty big spiders here."

Sayuri froze. "How big are we talking?"

"Oh," the crow said. "Not super big. The biggest one is maybe a 5 meter span. But most are smaller than that."

Her throat went dry. "What?"

"Also, be careful in the lake because I saw a giant squid paddling around in there."

This had to be some kind of nightmare. Did she pass out from excitement after signing the summoning scroll? The crow continued on blithely unaware of Sayuri's growing distress.

"If that's all, I'm going to head home," the crow said.

"WAIT!" Sayuri cried. "I don't even know how I got here. And who are you?"

"Oh," the crow said, chakra swirling in embarrassment. "Sorry about that. My name is Miu. I reverse summoned you to bring you here, and since we have a contract you will be able to summon me if you desire."

"Okay," Sayuri breathed. "Thank you Miu-san. I just wasn't expecting to leave the nest so soon."

The larger crow, she seemed to be around the size of a horse, gave a nervous laugh. "I suppose I've been a little anxious to return home. At my size I've become a bit of a target. You see, there are also these creatures that are like men, but with horse bodies. And they've decided I'm an intruder and shoot arrows at me whenever they find me."

"I-," Sayuri was at a loss for words on that one. "That's terrible."

"It is," Miu agreed. "But I'm sure they'll like you better, since you're both humanish."

"Miu-chan," Sayuri sighed. "Even humans hardly ever like each other."

The bird's chakra wavered. "Oh. I guess you have a point. Well, would you like a quick tour before I go then? It's dark right now so we'll be less visible. You can do your sensor thing and get a feel for the layout of the place"

"Okay," she said, more because she wanted to delay being left completely alone in a strange forest with giant spiders, squids, and heavily armed human-horse hybrids as long as she could.

In a weirdly familiar grabbing motion, Miu snatched Sayuri in her spear-like beak, tossed the child onto her back, and with a powerful stroke of her wings broke through the forest canopy and launched into the sky.


	6. The Wiggentree

Sayuri wiped the boggy taste of water vapor from her mouth as they flew.

"This is the big lake," Miu said. "Any questions?"

She clutched handfuls of feathers and leaned into the wind. The sensations were overwhelming. Up in the sky, she let her chakra loose and just soaked in everything she could touch as Miu glided along. There was a visceral sense of the way the wind currents spiraled up beneath them from the lake surface. Of the intense weight of the water below masking things that lived beneath, the land on the shores thick with sharpness and softness everywhere.

"What's past the other shore?" she asked.

"A stone fortress," Miu replied. "We believe it's a school."

"Can we get closer?"

"There are some chakra barriers but I was able to pass through those before." With several mighty beats of her wings, Miu wheeled on an air current and set out across the lake. After a minute or two, a strange tingling passed over Sayuri and she instinctively drew her chakra back inward.

_Was_ that _the barrier?_ she worried. It was, kind of intrusive. "Hey, Miu-chan. Should we go back now?"

"In a minute," Miu cawed. "I'll fly once around the fortress and then we'll leave. It's night so nobody should see us."

Sayuri tensed up, afraid to let her chakra out here so close to the building. For the first time since leaving the crow's realm, she really felt blind. She hunched into Miu's neck, burying her face in the feathers and trying to ignore the floating, weightless sensation of being cut off from their surroundings. It felt like something was watching them. Watching_ her_. Not anything she could sense directly, just a heavy feeling in her gut.

* * *

It had taken a few weeks for Sayuri to settle on a good place in the forest. In the end, she chose three separate hiding places and on Tsuchibue's advice started building up caches of food in different locations away from where she slept. It was much colder here than in either Konoha or Taiyo no Yama. The cotton pants and long sleeved shirt weren't really good for the climate. Especially at night, or when she got wet. To stay warmer she'd taken the bandage from her thigh and carefully wound it around her face and neck, like a scarf and mask, though she figured she'd probably look like some kind of weirdo if anybody saw her. She used the one that originally acted as a blindfold to wrap her hands.

Usually she had to leave her clothes behind when she went fishing. Most fish stayed in the deep water. But today she'd gotten lucky and found a lone eel in the shallows. That meant she didn't have to fight off those weird little bitey squid things in the deeper water.

Fingers brushed over a rough log mired in the boggy shore. She didn't even bother gutting the eel wriggling in her hands, settling for smashing its head with a rock and skewering it on a sharpened stick which she stuck into the mud like a flag. Her hands went through the familiar seals for_ katon_, carefully compressing chakra in her lungs.

Fire seared past her fingertips, warming her numb fingers as she breathed on the skewer.

_Don't burn_, she pleaded with the eel, tamping down the flow of chakra as much as she could without the flame going out completely. She still hadn't quite gotten the hang of roasting fish without charring the outside and leaving the middle raw.

It took three full breaths to crisp up the outside completely. Tentatively she pulled the bandages down off her mouth and bit into it.

The meat was warmed nicely all the way through this time. But the inside was still gooey. She didn't waste any more time with trying to roast it though, as she'd already used enough fire out in the open and _things_ were creeping out of the lake toward her.

Hungry things. She didn't really have words for them. A few were the small bitey squids though. She did not like those, and they didn't taste very good either.

She gathered up her food and retreated from the lakeside into the comforting cover of tree branches. These still held their leaves. She wasn't sure if that meant they were evergreen, or if it wasn't quite winter. Either way, she felt less exposed where natural energy seeped from the crisscrossing branches and twigs, blurring everything around her.

Plenty of horrible things lurked in the branches she'd found, like giant spiders, but she was less likely to meet those strange horse-people or others up here.

She bit her finger, made the seals, and a small crow appeared before her.

"Yo!" the crow greeted.

"Hi Tsuchi-kun. I just wanted to know if you would like some eel." Sayuri tore a piece off and held it out.

He made a pleased croaking sound and plucked it from her hand. As they sat together, savoring the last of the eel a dense, stony presence reeking of sewage lumbered beneath the tree. It stopped and sniffed the air, grunting and belching.

"What is that?" she whispered.

"I don't know," he whispered back. "It looks like an oni."

"It smells like poo," she informed him.

They both waited what felt like a very long time for it to move on, but once it left other creatures started creeping in, also attracted to the scent of charred eel.

Wordlessly, Sayuri pulled the bandages back over her face and threw the smelly roasting stick toward the lake shore. She leapt through the branches deeper into the forest. Some snagged at her face and caught her hair, but she ducked and twisted, glad for the bandages to protect her eyelids.

She veered off her path to avoid the agitated horse-people galloping through a nearby ravine. Maybe they didn't like onis?

They'd come upon each other twice, and she hoped to never have that happen again. Whenever they noticed her they mostly got angry and while nobody shot arrows at her like Miu reported, they shouted at her in a strange language. She didn't want to find out what would happen if she stayed around.

It didn't take too long to reach the closest nest she'd built. It was high up an old tree. She liked it because it felt stronger and brighter than the trees around it which made it easier to find, and as a bonus those giant freaky spiders seemed to avoid touching it.

She landed lightly on a branch. Tsuchi-kun glided ahead, landing in her sleeping spot and she followed, diving into the hollow bit of the trunk she'd packed with duck feathers and moss.

"This is a nice tree," the crow said. "You could probably make chakra paper from it."

"What's that?" she asked.

"Special paper shinobi use to find out their elemental affinity."

"Really?" She pulled some moss down over her, tucking it around herself to keep the creeping chill off. "What's yours?"

"I'm a wind type," he preened. "It's the strongest battle type you know."

Sayuri lay in the nest, feeling the presence of small stick creatures she'd nicknamed 'twig boys' coming closer. "What type am I?"

Tsuchibue hopped down into the fluff next to her. "I don't know. You're okay with fire techniques already though. Lots of Uchiha are fire types." He was silent for a moment. "Shisui was a fire type."

They stayed in companionable silence for a good while, the twig boys hopping around her still form. The first time she'd showed up, they tried attacking her face but didn't get far because of the bandages. Plus they weren't all that strong. After a bit they warmed up to her though. They were kind of growing on her. Plus she noticed they ate bugs, and that made them all right in her book.

She didn't like bugs.

"Look at you. This is a mess," Tsuchibue scolded. He started preening her hair. "You seem to be doing fairly well, but you need to also work in some training so you don't fall behind," he added. "Yatagarasu-sama wants you to become a strong shinobi worthy of us crow summons."

"What should I do?" she asked. She poked a finger into the air, and a bold twig boy hopped onto it. His feet tickled.

"We need a training plan," the crow said. "Since you can already stick to solid surfaces, you should practice walking on water next. After that, you need to start putting more power into your fire jutsus and the safest place to do that is out on the lake. It's good that you're learning finer chakra control by cooking your fish, but to get your eyes back you'll need to be able to_ fry_ your opponent."

A rush of anger filled her, startling the twig boy into fleeing. "I'm going to kill those fuck faces," she said venomously. "Fry every last one of those filthy bugs, and feed those two men their own livers then beat them to death with their own spines."

"That's the spirit," the crow cackled. "You must have gotten that temper from your mother."

"Damn right," she growled. "Anyway, will big fire jutsus be visible from the fortress?"

"Maybe, but it's far away. Just don't train near your sleeping areas, use your sensing to make sure nobody is around, and run away if anyone comes near," he said. "It's not hard."

"Sounds like a plan," she rolled over. "I'll get started tomorrow."

* * *

Halloween had passed without incident, and the Christmas holiday was fast approaching. Albus Dumbledore made his way across the school grounds. The trees had finally lost all their leaves for the season, and the surrounding mud threatened to soil his violet robes and slippers. Wordlessly he cast a dirt repelling charm as he walked and wished it would snow already.

Nearing the distant cottage, a giant figured shaded its eyes and waved. "Professor Dumbledore!" the giant man called, a wide grin spreading through his bushy beard. "Wot brings you out 'ere?"

"Oh, just checking on things Hagrid. Have you heard news of anything strange in the forest lately?"

Hagrid knit his brows together in concern. "The centaurs 'ave been tetchy lately but didn' say why."

"There are rumors going around that a dragon has been seen on the lake."

Craggy eyebrows shot upwards. "A dragon! 'Ere? Did they see, was it a Welsh green? Or sum'mit else?" His big hands flexed and he shifted his weight as if he was trying to restrain himself from dashing off into the forest to search for it that very instant.

"I take it that means you haven't seen it for yourself. No reports on the species, Hagrid. But do exercise caution."

"No sir. That is, I 'aven't seen one. But I'll be on the lookout."

"Very good Hagrid. Let me know if you hear of anything unusual on your search."

"I will," he said earnestly.

Albus felt a heavy gaze on him. He glanced toward the forest, seeing no one at first. Then a glimpse of sleek golden hide and blond hair.

"Firenze, is that you?" he called.

The centaur stepped from the trees, approaching the headmaster and giant groundskeeper. "Headmaster Dumbledore," he said politely," Hagrid,"

"I confess I didn't expect to see you. Hagrid mentioned something is troubling your herd lately?"

"Indeed," the centaur said. "And we cannot agree on the nature of it."

"Is it something I can assist you with?" he probed.

"Perhaps," Firenze said cryptically. "Something new has moved into the forest. Some of us believed it was a human foal at first. Others believed it was a dark creature. It has been casting spells and disrupting the forest."

"What is your opinion?" Dumbledore asked.

"It is no dark creature, because it sleeps in the branches of a wiggentree," he began. "But I know not what it is. It does not move like any human I have seen. Several of us have consulted the stars for answers, but nothing is written of this creature in our sky. We called out to it twice, but it fled."

Dumbledore's brow furrowed. That was curious indeed. If this was truly a human child, the ministry should have detected underaged magic being cast. Perhaps they were a grown wizard of smaller stature, similar to Professor Flitwick?

"Would your herd be willing to grant me passage through their forest to the wiggentree this person has taken residence in?"

"I shall consult with the elders and return with their answer," he said. "Farewell, Professor Dumbledore."

"Farewell, and thank you Firenze."

The centaur trotted back into the forest, quickly disappearing among the shadows. Albus sighed, "Well my friend, it seems there may not be a dragon after all."

Hagrid looked crestfallen, and Albus couldn't help but feel a bit sorry for the man. "I'll keep an eye out anyway, fer both dragons and that person Firenze talked about."

"As will I," Albus said gravely.

* * *

**Author's Note: If anything is confusing please let me know. Hopefully this is turning out readable and the story is okay. I'm looking forward to writing upcoming parts where she will actually be interacting with people and not just jumping around setting things on fire. The twig boys are her name for bowtruckles. The little bitey squids are grindylows. **


	7. Intruder

Several weeks passed before Firenze returned with permission for Dumbledore to enter their territory. The centaur elders were loathe to allow humans on their land and apparently wanted to spend a bit more time searching the stars for answers. Or hoped in vain that the trespasser would quietly move on.

Which was how he found himself spending an overcast afternoon during Christmas break traipsing through the snow among the towering trees of the Forbidden Forest.

Blue embroidered silk robes swished around his legs as he walked, further covered by a plum colored woolen cloak. His feet ached in spite of the warming charms cast on his socks. Perhaps this year would be the year those around him would see fit to gift him with a really good warm pair for Christmas.

His young potions master walked alongside him impatiently, black robes cast into sharp silhouette against the snow. Black hair hung about the younger man's face and pale cheeks were stained with uncharacteristic pink in the cold air.

"We needn't be in a hurry Severus," he gently reminded. "From what Firenze has told us, this stranger will be frightened off before we can get a sense of them if we approach too quickly."

"I still think it's likely some werewolf that decided to leave civilization behind," Severus muttered.

"Perhaps."

The snow crunched under their shoes in what was an otherwise companionable silence. He paused every so often. Not just to listen but to let his expansive magic seep out and permeate the surroundings. A wild owl huddled in the branches overhead. Rodents nested deep within the roots of a nearby tree. A family of deer watched the two men passing through with great bewilderment. Dumbledore hummed softly to himself as he squinted into the distance.

"It feels as if the wiggentree is in this direction," he said. He hadn't gotten a whiff of anything so complex as a human, unless you counted the centaur warriors skirting their path in the distance. Their caution was understandable, considering the women were due to foal in a few short months.

All the more reason to accept help in removing the intruder from their territory.

He felt the wiggentree's warm and soothing presence long before it came into view. The bare, gnarled branches of the tree curled into its neighbors, as if the trees were lacing their fingers together all around to form a canopy of wood and ice over the heads of the wizards.

At a distance, the powerful presence of the wiggentree had concealed the intruder. Either they were very clever, or it had been an instinctive move. Someone was indeed up in those branches. Hidden near the trunk. He cast his magic out. Permeated the air around the tree, surrounding them.

Severus drew his wand and tensed, dark eyes trained on the tree. At this distance he could sense it too. Inwardly, Albus was pleased at how well his young friend was progressing under his mentorship.

Drawing a long, frigid breath through his nostrils, Albus lowered his eyes for a moment. Directed his magic into a non verbal charm.

_Homenum Revelio_

The peculiar, swooping feeling that rushed over him from the tree indicated that yes, their mystery figure was a human. He frowned in thought.

At this point he had two choices. One was to return to the castle and leave them undisturbed. The other was to confront them directly. He suspected whoever it was would flee the instant contact was made.

The question was, could he justify forcibly restraining whoever it was in order to speak to them if they didn't cooperate?

In the end, his responsibility as headmaster won out. He simply could not leave a stranger of unknown provenance to live on centaur lands in the Forbidden Forest where they might access wayward students. Turning his head to catch Severus' eye, he gave a slight nod.

* * *

Sayuri lay huddled in her nest, inside the chakra tree as she'd come to think of it. She was buried under moss and downy feathers. Many of the Twig Boys had burrowed down under it to stay with her, and even seemed like to nesting in her hair. She didn't know if it was to keep warm, or if they simply liked her company. They'd gotten pretty friendly over the last few months though, and she appreciated their fierce defense of her little home. It wasn't like having Fukumaru around, but, they were starting to feel like friends.

She'd felt two foreign chakras in the distance today. They were both uncomfortably strong, reminiscent of shinobi. As soon as she sensed them, she'd withdrawn all of her chakra, as much as she could and retreated to her tree. It had the disadvantage of leaving her blind to any approach, but she felt secure with the Twig Boys to keep watch and whoever it was probably wouldn't even notice her.

As the afternoon wore on, the two made their way deeper into the forest, nearer to her tree with every step.

Usually pulling everything inward like this made it hard to sense anything around her, but one of them was broadcasting his chakra like a flare as if to deliberately draw attention to himself. She trembled under the moss, because the sheer warmth and brightness of it reminded her of someone she knew she'd never see again.

_Mom. _

Only, it wasn't mom. It couldn't be her. Her chakra was never so enormous. Never so dense. She fought to keep her own chakra from pulsing in response, when to her horror something forcibly wrestled it from her control.

Only for a moment, but in that moment the two men had stopped. They stood at the base of her tree, and in that moment she bitterly regretted choosing the best and brightest tree in the forest to live in.

The dense, bright chakra bathed the trunk of her tree. Radiated up through the branches like a rising sun. A sun she instinctively wanted to embrace, yet feared would roast her alive. She tensed, grinding her teeth. The instant it hovered over her nest was too much. They knew. They were going to get her. And she exploded.

* * *

A small black streak flew upward through the branches, more like a feral cat than human. Albus' wand was already in motion weaving an unseen barrier to enclose them.

The figure spun around, seeming to know they were surrounded somehow then dropped straight down through the weakest spot in the barrier, through the branches, landing neatly on all fours in the snow.

Ever reliable, Severus knocked them backwards with a stunning spell, then with a slashing motion of his arm had them bound in thick black cords.

Wary, Albus took a step closer and adjusted his glasses.

The person they'd captured had a child's stature, but just as Firenze reported hadn't moved at all like a human. They wore tatty black clothing with dirty bandages covering their hands, feet, and the bulk of their head with a mess of jagged black hair the only clue as to age

Not taking his eyes off them, Albus cleared his throat. "Would you do the honors, Severus?"

Dark features grim, the potions master gingerly slit the bandages open with the end of his wand to reveal the pale face of a young child.

"Good lord Albus," the potions master breathed. He knelt closer, this time turning the child's head in his long fingers. "She has no eyes."

At that moment, the she fought her way back to consciousness and jerked away from Severus' hand. A sound he'd only heard made by his own younger sister in the throes of reliving her torture erupted from her throat. Severus flinched away from her, just as a cloud of enraged bowtruckles descended upon the younger wizard.

Still bound, the child wriggled away with surprising strength. Their magic flared outward wildly as another guttural scream was ripped from their throat. Albus froze, swallowing down the panic that rose.

It had been decades. Nearly a century. Fighting back tears, he reminded himself she was dead. Ariana was dead. Ariana _is_ dead._ Dead._

But this felt so much like her fits.

Sudden fear gripped him. That he would cast the wrong spell. That something would ricochet. The spell would hit her wrong. An accident.

That she would _die_.

Paralyzed, he watched Severus fling off his cloak and the bulk of the bowtruckles along with it. The younger man's silhouette disappeared as he gave chase.

There were more screams.

This time, instead of raw animal sounds, there were words.

_"Kaa-san! Kaa-san!_

_Tasukete!"_

The foreign words broke through the wall of memories holding him back. Pushed him into motion. Slowly at first. Keenly feeling his age, he caught up. Throat thick with emotion, he called back to her in the same language. That they wouldn't harm her. That she was safe. But it made no difference.

_"Mienai! __Kaa-san!" _The words were choked out between sobs that wracked her small body._ "Shuni na!"_

The words tore at him, painting a chilling picture of what might have happened. He was never able to calm Ariana,_ his own sister_, when she was like this. He, a complete stranger, would never be able to calm this child with words alone after attacking her and tying her up in the forest.

His voice cracked. _"_Severus, stun her now. _Please." _

It took the potions master several more tries and flinging determined bowtruckles away from his eyes before he landed a solid hit. He reinforced the bindings that had loosened in the struggle, then stood with a grim expression on his lightly bleeding face. "Now what?"

"First, I am sorry. Thank you for seeing that through."

Severus frowned at him and folded his arms across his chest. "Care to explain why you froze up?"

"I did not expect to encounter a singularly terrible memory today. That was inexcusable however."

"What-," the younger man's voice finally started to waver. "What was she shouting?"

Albus sighed, a bone deep weariness settling over him. "She seemed to be reliving the death of her mother, and loss of her vision."

Severus huffed quietly, breath coming out in a puff of fog. "Why do I feel like a monster right now?" he muttered. "Are we off to inflict this on Poppy next? Or should she be packed straight off to St. Mungo's?"

St. Mungo's. His parent's had gone to great lengths to keep Ariana's condition hidden so she wouldn't be imprisoned there. He doubted being locked in a hospital ward would do anything positive for the sanity of a child adopted into a branch of bowtruckles, accustomed to sleeping in a tree.

He had really, badly mishandled the situation. Though, with the lack of a trace on her and obvious use of magic, the last thing he expected to find out here was a wizarding child.

Hopefully today's experience hadn't inflicted any more permanent damage to her psyche.

"I know one person who is very experienced at managing children with trauma," he said slowly. "Poppy can check her over while I contact them and see what they suggest."

* * *

**A/N: So, this wasn't exactly how I had planned for them to meet, but Dumbledore (like usual) thought he knew the best way to handle the situation. Poor Sayuri just wanted to stay in her little nest with her bowtruckle friends and not be cold.  
**

**The spell Dumbledore used to reveal her presence is the same one he used in the books to reveal the presence of Harry and his friends under the invisibility cloak without alerting anyone else. I always figured Dumbledore to have similar abilities as a sensor type ninja, but even moreso since he has legilimency and other specific techniques he can perform without a wand or hand seals or saying a spell out loud. **


	8. Chapter 8

The fabric against Sayuri's skin was soft and dry. Warmth infused her, with the sort of grogginess that only comes from having slept deeply and for a long time.

That feeling didn't last though. Not when she woke up enough to realize that she wasn't in a duck feather nest in the chakra tree with the little Twig Boys.

Resisting the urge to throw herself upright and make a run for it, she pretended to sleep. Casting her chakra around, it met dense, unyielding stone. Not like any other stone she'd encountered. Stones normally had nature energy. This was deeply infused with some unknown person, or maybe multiple unknown persons, chakra. There was no way to sense what might be on the other side. And it surrounded her, ceiling, floor, and walls. At least, the chakra in the stone didn't match that of the men that attacked her.

There were no other people in the room. But that didn't mean she was unobserved. She'd been taken. They'd possibly drugged her judging by how deeply she'd been asleep.

Her jaw clenched and she used way too much energy to hide the fact that she was awake and angry to an empty room. The cloying scent of lavender that filled her nose came from herself. _Someone_ had taken off her clothes and _bathed_ her. She could also smell food now that she was more awake, but didn't dare move.

If nobody had killed her while she was unconscious, and they'd bothered to clean her up and wasted fresh clothes on her then she would take advantage of the warm blankets and things for a bit longer at least. Blankets were a luxury she'd honestly missed, and she needed more information about what was happening before she escaped.

Besides, one of the things they studied at the academy in taijutsu class was when to yield, and when to strike. Using up all your strength to hit an opponent when they were at their strongest would ensure your loss. Better to yield first, then move when their guard was down.

First things first though, she needed a new blindfold. Her face felt completely naked, and she hated the feeling that anything could just come along and touch her eyelids.

* * *

Albus shuffled to a stop outside the sealed door, steeling himself with a deep breath. A nearby portrait of a woman wearing a lacy yellow dress jostled an open umbrella to get his attention.

"She's been very quiet since being put in there," the portrait said.

Dumbledore nodded to the painting, and knocked softly on the door.

There was no verbal response. At least from her outburst in the forest, he knew she could communicate in Japanese. He'd been brushing up on vocabulary since they'd brought her to the castle. Clearing his throat, he spoke in words he hoped could be understood.

"Oko-san, my name is Albus Dumbledore. May I please enter the room? I would like to explain what is happening."

He waited patiently in the cold hall for a response, and was finally rewarded with a firm, "Come in."

She was dressed in spare black student's robes shrank down to her size. He was intrigued by three crows that were helping themselves to the food left out for her. They briefly slowed their feasting to regard him curiously. He'd have to investigate how they managed to get in.

The girl crouched in a squashy purple chair, small pale hands clenching the arm rests. She'd found something to tie around her head like a blindfold. His gaze went to the torn edge of the tablecloth. So, that was it.

"Albus Dumbledore," she said, the foreign sounds rolled around in her mouth and came out wrong. "What should I call you?"

"I am a teacher. As it stands I am not your teacher, but you may address me as one if you like. How would you prefer to be addressed?"

She scowled, "Oko-san is fine, Dumbledore-sensei."

"Before I begin, do you have any questions?" The girl curled in on herself, sullen. Unthinking, he extended passive legilimency over her then pulled it back when she flinched. "Well then, first I would offer you my apologies. My colleague and I did not expect to find a child in the forest. Had we known, we would have never approached you in that manner. I am deeply sorry."

One of her hands twitched, but she made no other move or sound.

"You are a guest at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. You will not be held here against your will. I do ask that you be open to the suggestions I make, as we are all quite concerned with your living situation."

He paused, hoping for some sign of agreement or acknowledgement but the girl sat still as if she hadn't heard him.

"Do you have any family or friends that we could assist you in locating?" He almost hesitated to ask this, fearing it could trigger another outburst like the one in the forest.

She opened her mouth, then thinking better of whatever she was going to say closed it tight. "No."

"Would you allow me to make alternate arrangements for your housing then? I'm afraid that there is a treaty guaranteeing the forest lands be free of human trespass. The centaurs were very upset."

"Sen-tars?" she said uncertainly.

"One of them informed me that they attempted to speak to you, however the difference in language interfered."

"Are they the spiders? Or the other people?"

"The other people."

She sank back into the chair looking sad. "I liked my tree though. And those little twig guys."

Dumbledore relaxed. This wasn't the demeanor of an unstable malicious child like Tom Riddle had been, and she'd finally given him a few sentences. "Ah, we call those 'bowtruckles'. They are very fond of you as well. They fought viciously on your behalf when they thought you were being hurt by my potion's master."

"Were they hurt?"

"No, none harmed at all. I can't say the same for the potion's master though."

She breathed out a sigh.

"Hogsmeade village is on the other side of these hills" he continued. "There is an inn, and the owner has agreed to meet you. He may be willing to let you stay with him. You would have to work out the rules of your stay, but I have known him to be very fair. I suspect that he'd be content to just have a bit of help managing his goats."

"I'm willing to meet him," she said.

"Excellent. Now, the next issue we have is language. Most people in this country do not speak your language. The owner of the inn does not."

"What language do they speak?"

"English."

She sank back into the chair looking grim.

"I have a solution which may work. But first I need to know something about your background. In the forest, I witnessed you perform what we consider magic, and the presence of these crows seems to be magical as well. This place is a school for teaching magic. Are you familiar with other types of magic?"

"Yeah, I guess," she offered. A jagged hank of black hair drifted over her face, but she made no move to brush it away.

"Do you remember?" he prompted. "Where you came from?"

"I remember. I am familiar with m-magic, sensei." She tripped over the word. He pretended not to notice.

"There is a potion that can be administered to facilitate learning a new language. I myself have learned quite a few with support from this particular brew. If you like, I can supply you with a few doses. You will get the most benefit by immersing yourself in the spoken language for approximately 10 hours after taking a dose."

"That might be useful," she nodded curtly. "When can I leave this room?"

"I can give you a tour of the castle this afternoon. Elements of the school are a bit jarring, and I would hate for you to fall somewhere or get lost. Would you like more food brought up for yourself and your friends?"

As if being directly addressed, one of the crows swept across the room and landed on the arm of his chair. "Bring more grapes please," it croaked. "My sister likes walnuts too."

The little girl slapped her forehead and growled something through her fingers that sounded like _baka-tuschi_.

"Red or green grapes?" Dumbledore asked.

"Both!" And with that the bird flew back to rejoin its family.

"Fascinating companions you have," he said with warmth. "No doubt you have been well looked after."

The child's posture softened at his words.

"If I may, your appearance reminds me of someone I met many many years ago," Dumbledore ventured, "when I was travelling on a continent hidden to the rest of the world."

"Who?" she asked, the twitching in her hands betraying her tension.

"A boy named Uchiha Madara."

The crows became more subdued, their sharp black eyes trained on the old wizard. When the girl finally did speak, her voice was hoarse. "Never heard of him."

"I expect not," Dumbledore said. "He would be old enough to be your great great grandfather." Rising from the chair, he waved his hand causing a variety of grapes and nut platters, along with some cheeses for the benefit of the one crow who hadn't spoken up, to appear. "I'll return later to take you for a walk. Would you like to meet the other teachers? Right now most of our students are home with their families so I'm afraid there isn't much company."

"All right," she said. "Will you teach me some E-English today too, sensei?"

"Certainly. We can start with '_good bye'._"

She hesitantly repeated the unfamiliar words before he stepped back through the door, which firmly latched and sealed behind him. A black and white tabby waiting in the hall took a step forward, twisting and growing in a blink into the Deputy Headmistress.

"Well, how was she?" Minerva asked, rubbing the cold from her forearms.

"Awake," he said. "Not as combative as I feared, but less forthcoming than I hoped."

Minerva placed a hand on his arm, steering him down the hall toward the warmth of the staff lounge. "Is she able to speak English at all, Albus?"

"No, but she seems willing to learn. I agreed to give her a tour of the castle this afternoon, and she expressed interest in beginning some language lessons. If Severus could be persuaded to brew a batch of Lingua Nova it would speed things along considerably."

"I'm surprised she seemed as healthy as she did," Minerva said, frowning. "Poppy and I saw old acromantula bites, and Poppy found scarring consistent with an impalement injury. How such a young child could have survived alone in the forest boggles my mind."

"She was not willing to share her name, though she confirmed it indirectly," Dumbledore said. "It is the additional name that appeared on the school register for three years from now."

"Sayuri Uchiha?" Minerva asked. "How?"

"I mentioned another Uchiha in her presence. That name provoked a reaction. I suspect she would react badly to us knowing her identity without being told, so for now she will be treated as anonymous."

* * *

Sayuri paced, anxiously waiting what felt like hours for him to return. The room was bigger than she expected. She ran her hands along the walls and found polished wood wainscoting that came up to her shoulder, with smooth stone above that. There were no windows, at least that she could reach. She could feel no drafts at any point in the room. She even tried sticking to the walls, but the chakra in the stone was so dense it was difficult to maintain a matching amount in her hands or feet to stick. At Tsuchibue's urging, she finally sat down and ate a few nuts and grapes.

"How do you think he knew about Madara?" she asked.

"This sensei looks very old, Sayuri-chan. Older than the oldest shinobi you have ever seen," Tsuchibue said.

"Totally ancient," Nohkan piped in. "He definitely could have met the founders long, long ago."

"That's crazy," she said, rubbing her head. "You mean he's older than the Hokage? Anyway, you told me that this place is really far away from the elemental nations."

"If we could find this place, it makes sense that people here might also find their way to Fire Country once in a while," Nohkan pointed out.

Komabue paused in preening her feathers. "Yeah flight is common for chakra users here, remember? If someone could fly and found the same crooked path we take, there's really nothing to stop them from going."

Sayuri flopped down in a chair. "Okay, but if they figure out I'm an Uchiha isn't that dangerous? What if word gets back to to the village somehow?" She huffed and folded her arms. "I can't look _that_ much like Uchiha Madara. What a weird thing for someone to say. How does anyone even remember something that long ago? Plus, I've never even used that name. I've always gone by Akahane."

"Eh, I don't know." Tsuchibue said. "I'm too young to have met Madara myself. I mean, he wasn't even a crow summoner. But you Uchihas do have a look. Shisui always worried people would eventually figure out you were his."

"Mom worried about it too." She set down the handful of almonds, suddenly no longer hungry. "I didn't plan for this. Maybe we should leave this country."

"Hey, don't make rash decisions," Nohkan squawked, his chakra swirling with indignance. "It was really difficult finding a place this remote that still had chakra users to train you. Do you want to just eat half burned fish and live in trees for the rest of your life?"

"No," she said. "I need to get strong enough to kill those assholes and get my eyes back."

"Then you need a sensei," the crow said. "Here's a whole fortress full of them. You felt how powerful that man was just now."

It was true. His chakra had a way of filling up a room. It had even tried to fill up her head for a moment, before he pulled it back. That was more on level with a kage than with any of her senseis at the academy, or even her parents.

It was terrifying. But she wanted that power. That was exactly what she needed.

* * *

**Author's Note: So in this story I'm treating chakra and magic as having a common origin, but then diverge in methods of use due to geographic and cultural differences. Wizards are an insular community and are rewarded for freely sharing new spells and techniques they develop among each other, such as methods of flight or teleportation. Ninjas on the other hand, have weaponized it and jealously guard new innovations and specialized techniques, only sharing them with their students or family members.**

**I wasn't really sure what genres to put down when I started this, but I might end up moving it from horror/hurt/comfort to more of an adventure story. I used to really like writing action scenes and want to try and incorporate more of that in the future.**

**Also, thank you so much for taking the time to read this and for everyone who has reviewed. I really appreciate your time and am trying to make this worthwhile to read.**


	9. Traitors

Dumbledore returned that afternoon as promised, and began his tour.

One of the things that was most disconcerting about the school, was how dense the chakra in all the stones was. She'd assumed it was limited to the room they'd given her, fortified against escape. No, the entire place truly was a fortress. It was impossible to sense anything through them. Each corridor felt as if she was being compressed on all sides compared to how open the forest was. She guessed that it would take an exceptionally destructive jutsu to break through those walls.

Oh what the hokage wouldn't give for a fortress like this.

There was another phenomenon that disturbed her immensely.

Along the walls there were whisperings. Breathy chatter, from which she could make out real words although not in the language she knew. Faint chakra slipped alongside the whispers, but nothing substantial enough to be a person unless they were extremely skilled at masking their presence. It wasn't even as concrete as a seal or a jutsu, more like some sort of chakra residue.

Anyone that skilled at masking their chakra wouldn't be caught dead whispering.

Dumbledore-sensei shuffled alongside her, chatting happily about the school's history and locations of the various classrooms as they passed. When she slowed her steps, he was careful to match his pace to hers.

He wasn't going to allow her to slip behind.

"I think we shall visit the great hall next," he finally announced. "I'm really too old to be on my feet all day and I'm not certain how much benefit you will get from marching up and down near identical halls."

_Halls you can't even see_, was the implication she heard in his statement.

She nodded slowly, tilting her head from right to left as whispers rippled around them.

"What is making that sound?" she finally asked.

"Ah, that would be the paintings," he explained. Apparently her face betrayed confusion, she'd have to work on that. "The paintings at Hogwarts are animate and sentient."

Well, that was highly inconvenient. For her anyway. It held potential as a brilliant form of surveillance, which made her glad she hadn't assumed her private room was actually private.

Summoning the crows had been a gamble. She'd wanted her crows to observe Dumbledore-sensei _quietly, _along with wanting their help to discern whether the food was drugged or otherwise tampered with. It would have been better to keep the fact that they could speak secret. Although, he didn't seem surprised by Tsuchibue's demands.

Maybe that meant summon animals weren't unusual here.

On the way to the hall, he held up a hand to stop her. If he thought it odd that she slowed without making contact, he didn't say it. "The staircases are ahead. You must know that they have minds of their own, and are subject to changing their destinations on a whim. Sometimes while people are halfway up or down. Please be extremely cautious here, as a fall from the stairs could be messy."

She cast her chakra out around him when he turned away, careful not to brush up against his large, firey presence. When she reached the stairs, what she sensed fascinated her.

The stones held the same dense chakra as the rest of the fortress, only they_ moved._ She could almost picture them clearly, as solid as they felt under her probing chakra and their placement so firm in her mind. For the first time, she wondered if the building itself was sentient in some way.

The ceilings expanded higher and higher as she approached the great hall with the ancient sensei, relieving the sense of claustrophobia pressing in around her. Smells wafted through the corridor, tantalizing her with nameless sweets and the achingly familiar scent of pine.

This, it was her favorite room by far. Like stepping out into an open meadow compared to the rest of the building. Even the stones in the ceiling felt breezy somehow. At the far end of the room was a giant prickly mass which had to be the source of the pine scent.

"This is where students and staff take their meals," Dumbledore said. "If you would like to eat with us rather than in your room, your company would be most welcome."

She hesitated at that. How many other senseis were there? How many students? She didn't like the idea of being surrounded by strangers, and suddenly wished that anyone else was with her. With a pang, her thoughts went to pudgy little Fukumaru and she wondered yet again if he'd escaped that night. If anyone was looking after him. Or had he been left to beg on the streets of Konoha.

She tried not to imagine him, limp and lifeless on the floor like her mother.

She wondered too, what had become of Sasuke. Was he still attending the academy? Did he awaken his eyes too? If so, was he being targeted like her?

At least, she still had her crows.

The old man's voice intruded on her thoughts, like clouds breezing through and obscuring them. "In one week we will be hosting a holiday celebration. I believe that would be an ideal event for you to take the potion we discussed. You would be immersed in the spoken language for several hours."

She didn't answer right away. Instead she been considering fleeing the castle before then. These adults were complete strangers. And while it was true they could have easily poisoned her before this, she still didn't trust them. It wouldn't be too hard to find a new tree, far from here where they wouldn't find her so easily.

He'd already brought up the Uchiha name too. If he started contacting people in Konoha about her, it could undo every step she'd taken to survive so far.

Yet, all this time he'd phrased everything as suggestions. Besides locking her in the room, he wasn't requiring anything so far.

She wished his chakra was easier to feel out. He was so careful to keep it contained, serene, it was hard to tell if he was doing all of this out of pity, some legal obligation to look after an unaccompanied child, or if she was simply an object to exploit.

* * *

Later that evening, Sayuri sat cross legged on the floor of the room. She'd decided to build a blanket fort with the table for privacy, in case one of those spy paintings had been hung on the wall where she couldn't see or sense it.

Turning the chairs so the seats faced outward made her feel like she had something of a solid barrier along the sides, holding the sheets in place. She'd pulled the squashy cushions off the couch and piled them underneath, then slid the cool metal tray of food from the tabletop and pulled it under, balancing it on her crossed legs.

It smelled like grilled mackerel and steamed rice. Her stomach twisted painfully in both hunger and nostalgia. She bit her lip hard, fighting the wetness that welled from her empty eyelids. After a second's thought, she wiped the dab of blood from her lip and flickered through the seals to summon her friend.

Tsuchibue appeared with a poof.

"Sup?" he croaked.

"Are you guys able to deliver messages?" she asked.

"Verbal and written," Tsuchibue preened.

"Could you get one to Konoha?"

Tsuchibue's chakra dipped in disapproval. "Neh, we can but why would you contact anyone there when we went to so much trouble to hide you?"

Her hands started fidgeting with the strangely shaped eating utensil on the tray. "I just, thought maybe I should let Sasuke know. He should keep his eyes secret when he awakens them. Just in case."

"Hmm, that may be an issue for us."

She stilled her hands. "Why?"

"Well, if you could have seen the contract you signed, you would know the name of our only other living summoner," he said.

"Dad is gone, so that means-,"

_Uchiha Itachi._

"Dammit!" she snarled. "He'll think you're from his brother!"

"Right. But, you shouldn't worry about Sasuke. He's safe right now."

"How do you know that?" she growled.

"Because," the crow began awkwardly, "We've been keeping a lookout. Itachi left him alive. He intends to fight Sasuke himself one day. He won't allow someone else to cripple Sasuke before then."

Sayuri was silent for a moment as she digested this new information. "Are you telling me, that sick fuck slaughtered everyone except Sasuke so that he could secretly watch over him and eventually fight him to the death too?"

"Yes," he said. "He wants a real challenge. I suppose he thought Sasuke had the potential to become that challenge." Then as an afterthought, "you shouldn't use that language. Shisui would be appalled."

"Don't tell me how to talk," she snarled. "Don't talk to me about my father. And don't talk about Sasuke like he's some kind of toy for that monster."

"You sound exactly like your mother," he sighed. "She was so unladylike when she got angry."

Fury radiated off of her. This, this _dumb bird_. "_Good_. I'm _glad_ I sound like her. Now get the fuck out of here."

A silent moment passed before there was a poof of the summon reversing and she was left utterly alone in her personal darkness.

_Fuck those crows,_ she thought. _Fuck Itachi. _What if they were secretly passing information to _him? _What if Itachi knew she was _right here_? What if her own summons betrayed her?

She pushed the tray off her lap, panic thick in her throat. If there were two summoners at odds with the same contract, which one were they more loyal to?

The stronger one, right?

All she really knew about the contract was they had to fight on her behalf, and she had to fight on theirs. She hadn't been able to _read_ what she'd signed. Her arms trembled. Suddenly the smell of fish was nauseating. Fighting the compulsion to throw up, she pushed the tray out from under the privacy of the sheets. Out onto the floor where it sat, forsaken in the cold air.

There was no doubt Itachi was strong enough to break into this place. That he could carve holes in its walls if he chose. Carve her into a dozen pieces.

Worse yet, he didn't need to know where exactly she was. Even if she ran away from here, all he had to do was have his crows reverse summon her.

_Shit._

How could she have trusted them? Her only allies, gone just like that. She couldn't risk summoning them. She couldn't risk giving them any more intel about anything.

_But they saved your life, _came an intrusive thought. _They could have just abandoned you to the bug user. They could have let you die of your wounds. They could have sent you away with no contract. But they cared for you, even taught you._

Did Itachi have some twisted future use for her as well? Was that why they'd been willing to let a tiny blind weakling like her sign their contract?

She buried fists in her hair, pulling it until her eyelids grew wet from the pain of it instead of the ache in her chest. Choked back a sob that fought to escape her throat. She had to get stronger, no matter what. Had to get her eyes back. Had to help Sasuke, somehow, because otherwise that monster Itachi would take him too.

* * *

Severus Snape made his way out of the blessedly quiet great hall after breakfast. Christmas break was one of his favorite times at the castle.

The strange child he and Albus had found was given free access to the castle during daylight for the past three days, but so far she hadn't intruded on their meals. Some of his colleagues had worried. That she might run away, or get lost in the castle. The few students who had stayed over the holiday searched for her out of curiosity and boredom, but had no luck finding her.

Severus wasn't worried. Not about the girl anyway. He was more concerned she would intrude on or damage something she had no business getting into.

It was still his opinion that St. Mungo's was the most ideal place for someone so clearly disturbed. They had first rate healers, secure wards, and competent potioneers who were more than capable of brewing Lingua Nova. He could have devoted his Christmas holiday entirely to relaxing, but instead was spending the days leading up to Christmas closely tending the brew as requested by the headmaster.

Something about the child had deeply rattled the old man. Severus took comfort in the fact that after she drank the potion, she'd be out of the castle and into the hands of whatever poor soul Dumbledore managed to set the little monster on.

At least for the next few years.

Severus' attention was drawn by Mr. Filch's screams of barely coherent rage. He stalked closer to the castle entryway, where the sound reverberated from.

The child in question was standing in a pool of liquid she'd tracked from the entry despite it being completely frozen and icy outside. Her sodden black robes and unruly black hair dripped with slush, and the ever present blindfold obscured half her face. Clenched tight in her mouth was a slick eel, which writhed pathetically. The overall impression was of a kitten someone had thrown into the bath.

Mrs. Norris meowed pitifully, her claws tugging at Mr. Filch's pant leg.

The little girl didn't flinch from his shouting. She might have been deaf as well the way she just stood there. After a minute of silently being berated, she took a step forward, dipped into a crouch, and dropped the eel from her mouth onto the floor.

The elderly cat immediately darted forward, snatched it, and ran down the corridor with Mr. Filch limping after her crying, "Mrs Norris! You don't know where that's been! It hasn't even been cooked, don't trust it!"

As the caretaker and his cat disappeared around a corner, the child strode forward with purpose. He saw that her arms, were crossed tightly over her chest, not against the cold but to restrain an armful of live eels. He stilled his breathing and watched with narrowed eyes as she swept closer. He almost thought she'd failed to notice him, but she inclined her head in his direction as she passed.

_"Ohayō gozaimasu, Snape-Sensei."_

He didn't say anything back.

_"Unagi wa ikagadesu ka?"_ she said in a small voice. She shifted her armload and stretched a pale little hand toward him, a wriggling eel draped over her outstretched palm.

Lip curling, he infused his his voice with the full force of his disdain so the meaning would not be mistaken even if she did not know the words. "I think not."

Shrugging, she tucked the eel back in with the others and continued on her trajectory down the corridor.

He shook his head and in a rare act of charity toward the groundskeeper went to draw the wand from his pocket so he could vanish the mess.

Only, something else was in his pocket too. Something cold. Slimy. And alive. It coiled around his hand.

With a hiss of irritation he jerked the eel out and threw it to the floor, then vanished it along with the rest of the unwanted slush.

When had it gotten there?_ And how? _Accidental magic?

_Only a few more days until Christmas_, he told himself. _A few more days, then I won't have to see that little beast for several years._

* * *

**Author's Note: Thank you for sticking along and reading through this so far. I was trying to get through the Christmas holiday in this chapter, but my brain is just too tired and it felt like an okay stopping point for now. There's a time skip coming up fairly soon, so it's not going to be 100 chapters of her being 8 years old.**

**When she spoke to Snape, she basically just said hello, then asked him if he wanted an eel. Then decided he needed one anyway. **


	10. Christmas

Sayuri's bare feet padded soundlessly down the corridor, frigid water trickling down her legs from her soaked clothing. Eels writhed in her arms. She'd found one of the cats living in the castle right away, which was lucky. There were three more that she knew of, so she'd made it her personal mission to bring each of them an eel.

She'd also picked up one of the Twig Boys from her old tree and decided to name him Koeda. What was it Dumbledore-sensei called them? _Botaku?_ Something like that. The tiny creature was tucked behind her ear.

If the crows were going to betray her like that, she needed _some_ kind of trustworthy friend around.

She couldn't bring herself to eat the food that appeared in her room every day, but it was more important than ever to keep training. Someday maybe she could learn new techniques at this school. In the meantime, diving in the lake during mid winter was excellent training. That jerk Tsuchibue had taught her how to burn her chakra to sustain her body underwater. Underwater hunts for eels was an excellent exercise in sensing and chakra control, and eels were an excellent food. For now, she would just keep building up control and expand her puny reserves as much as possible.

The gross little squid things must have been hibernating in the cold or something because she hadn't run into any today. She was kind of looking forward to taking out her frustration on one.

A cat's presence appeared at the end of the corridor. Sayuri stilled. At least, its chakra was _like_ a cat. But also, not a regular cat. Definitely stronger than a normal cat. Maybe it was somebody's summon?

_I wish I'd gotten a contract with cats instead of those dumb birds_, she thought. Cats wouldn't betray her to Itachi. If she had cats to carry messages, nobody would suspect them. Especially not Sasuke. He_ liked_ cats.

Maybe whoever summoned this cat would be willing to help her get a contract. Could you sign more than one summoning contract?

While she mulled all this over, the cat sauntered down the hallway toward her. It radiated a mixture of worry, and disapproval.

_Well, cats don't like water very much,_ she thought._ So it probably doesn't like me dripping all over. _

Wishing she could have a conversation with this cat, she dropped into a crouch and put a small eel on the floor in front of it.

"You probably don't speak my language," she said, "but this is for you."

It regarded her silently, chakra shifting to something like amusement. Feeling a little lighter, she stood and started down the corridor toward her room.

She'd reached her limit for now. Goosebumps prickled all over her legs and arms as she tamped off the chakra flow keeping her warm. It was time to change out of the wet clothes and hang the rest of the eels to cook in front of the fireplace in her room.

* * *

There was a rapping at her door and Sayuri blearily sat up with a start, cracking her head on the underside of the table. Wincing and rubbing her forehead, she pulled herself out into the open. Instinctively she reached out with her senses, then withdrew in disappointment.

She was so groggy she'd forgotten the doors and walls were too dense to feel anything through.

Koeda, the little Twig Boy, slipped inside the collar of her robe with a tickle on her neck and she yawned. Smoothing out the rumpled garment, she reached to open the door. Her hand grasped the cool round doorknob.

The radiant presence of the headmaster beamed at her as the door swung inward.

"Happy Christmas," Dumbledore-sensei said. "Did you find your gifts?"

"Eh?"

"Ah, I see they haven't been touched yet." Her surroundings seemed to warm up by several degrees as he stepped into the room. "It's customary to give gifts on this holiday, and as a guest you couldn't be left out."

"Oh." Fleeting embarrassment washed over her. She hadn't gotten anyone anything. Nobody had mentioned that part to her. And disconcertingly, she hadn't noticed anyone enter the room.

"What part of the day is it?" she asked, rubbing at the blindfold out of the lifelong habit of having had eyes.

"Late morning," he said. "Do not worry. You aren't expected to provide any gifts. Though I am told the cats enjoyed their eels immensely." Though he didn't laugh outwardly, she got the sense that he found something about it humorous.

"If you would like to open your gifts now, some may even be of use to you today."

The old man guided her toward the fireplace where the scent of cooked eel lingered. There was a crinkling sound and a package nudged into her hesitant grasp. Plopping down into a seiza position, she pulled it onto her lap. Stiff paper crackled and silky ribbons slipped through her fingers.

"I can't accept these," she said. "I don't even know who they are from."

"Christmas gifts are a mysterious thing," he said. "Traditionally a figure known as Father Christmas is responsible for bringing them."

"Who is that?"

"Just a kindly old man who secretly leaves gifts for children."

Sayuri fidgeted with the ribbon. "Did he bring these?"

"Perhaps."

His cryptic answer confused her. Either Father Christmas did, or didn't.

Still, she sensed nothing but benevolence and expectant curiosity from the old sensei and guessed he was the mysterious gift giver. It didn't make sense for him to trust a stranger to enter the castle undetected and leave things behind. That was how people got blown up, their throats slit, or-

They got poisoned.

She pushed that thought down. This was supposed to be happy. Her fingers tugged softly at the ribbon, untangling the knot. She opened the paper and ran soft, thick fabric through her hands. Her fingers found four large buttons, and felt out long sleeves.

"It's a dress," he explained. "It buttons up in the back. You've been wearing black student robes, but this is much more suited to a little girl. The pattern is green and blue squares, and it would be very suitable for the holiday gathering today." He paused, "I think not, for swimming in the lake however."

Sayuri felt her cheeks heat up and she bowed her head. "Thank you, Dumbledore-sensei."

The next packages contained an assortment of socks and underclothes, two more dresses, a pair of sturdy leather boots, something that might have been a blanket or cloak, and even a modest bathing suit. She stood and bowed when she was finished, thanking him profusely for the gifts.

"The holiday gathering starts in one hour in the great hall," he said. "I know Snape-sensei is anxious to give you your potion. I trust you will be there?"

"Yes, Dumbledore-sensei."

After the old man excused himself, she laid the clothing out flat and spent several minutes just running her hands over it. A strange emotion stuck in her throat. It wasn't happiness, not really. But it wasn't the crushing weight of fear or smoldering rage like she'd grown accustomed to. It was sort of a numbness.

Numbness was okay.

Grabbing the dress with the four buttons and a pair of underwear, she crawled under the table with it and slipped out of the robe. There was a brief wrestling match with the dress, contorting her arms to reach the buttons at her back. She then emerged and reached for a pair of socks, pulling them almost all the way up her legs.

Springing to her feet, she smoothed out the soft skirt which went down to her knees. The fabric was thick and wooly, nothing like the light breathable clothing she'd worn in Konoha. And really, it was perfect for this cool damp climate.

Hair was next. There was no doubt her head looked like a sea urchin.

Brushing only did so much to tame it. She picked a random ribbon from the gift wrapping and used it to bind everything back in a spiky ponytail. Then fixed her bangs so they fell naturally over the blindfold the way they would if it was a hitae-ate. Koeda clung to the ribbon and settled somewhere in her hair.

It felt weird to put on boots indoors, yet it was obvious from their footfalls that all the adults except Dumbledore wore shoes inside the castle. He seemed to favor soft slippers. She frowned, then decided to slip her feet inside them on her way out the door.

* * *

Softly falling snowflakes danced overhead, but none ever reached the floor of the great hall. Dumbledore had removed all the tables except for one down the very center in a bid to make the Christmas feast feel more cozy. As usual, the elves had outdone themselves preparing an impressive spread of food which the attendees had no hope of finishing.

There was a smattering of students left behind for the holiday at the far end of the table. Their disgustingly cheerful voices echoed in the mostly empty hall. On this day, Severus dutifully ignored them. There was an unspoken agreement not to ruin one other's Christmas.

Severus leaned back in his seat, eyeing the solemn black haired child sitting to his left. He could have sworn a bowtruckle had just hissed at him from her ponytail. Albus was seated to his right, smiling at everyone from the head of the table. Minerva and Filius were side by side across from him. Blessedly, the girl hadn't done anything particularly irritating yet.

He would never openly admit it, but he was eager to see how well the modifications he'd made to the _Lingua Nova_ potion worked on the child. Granted, it was considerably more bitter this way but she would simply have to endure it.

Pulling the flask from his robes he emptied it into a goblet, enjoying the subtle sheen of gold over the pine green that his changes had wrought. Suddenly anxious that she would spill it, he set it next to her plate but did not take his hand away.

"Tell her that it will not taste good, but she must drink it all."

Dumbledore relayed his message to her in a much more kindly voice. The girl set her chopsticks down and reached, hesitating just short of the goblet stem.

He took hold of her sleeve, guiding her fingers to the cup and only releasing it once she had it firmly in her grasp.

The child raised it to her mouth, and drank.

He expected her to pause for a breath part way through it or stop to complain about the flavor, but somehow she managed to get it all down in one go.

The staff all stared at her expectantly.

"I believe this is the point when everyone is supposed to be making conversation," Severus said softly.

Nervous laughter rippled through those that had been staring.

"Filius, you are wanting to restart the school choir this spring?" Dumbledore said helpfully.

And just like that, conversation sprang back up as if it had never been interrupted. He ate in silence, favoring the honeyed ham while he watched her reactions. Her head subtly moved left and right, following the headmaster's familiar voice in the conversation. This went on for at least twenty minutes until the echoing bang of a cracker filled the hall and a shower of confetti rained down at the far end of the table.

"Where did the child go?" Filius asked worriedly.

Severus blinked in confusion. The chair next to him was empty. He glanced around the room, then peered under the table expecting to find her hiding beneath. "She's not here," he said.

"I could swear she was right there, and then she vanished," Filius wrung his hands. "Where did she go?"

Minerva was also glancing around and at a loss. "Was that accidental magic? Maybe's she's gone invisible."

Severus gave the empty air in her seat an experimental jab.

"No, I'm afraid she left," Dumbledore said, his face suddenly sorrowful. "I didn't think to warn her about the crackers."

The two boys at the end of the table who'd pulled the cracker suddenly looked stricken.

"Oh no, we didn't realize it would frighten her. We'll go find her," said the older boy.

Severus rose from his seat, abandoning his unspoken pact to not ruin any student's holiday since they had finally intruded on his. "Tell me Mr. Stebbins, in all your free time at the castle this past week have you managed to find her _once_?" The boy's ears turned red and he shrank back down into his seat. "Obviously if she's hiding in fear it will be even harder than usual. _I_ will find her." He shoved the chair hard. The dishes clattered as it made contact with the table. "Otherwise that blasted potion I spent the whole week brewing is going to waste."

The boys exchanged looks that said they doubted being hunted down by an angry Professor Snape was going to be any less terrifying for the small girl. He swept past them, out the doors of the great hall.

He stood in the corridor outside, tightly reigning in his irritation.

At least she couldn't_ see_ him, so he didn't have to consciously smooth the scowl off his face in order to avoid frightening her. Ever since she'd been captured in the forest she hadn't shown any overt fear of him, if she showed any awareness of his presence at all. Their interactions had been neutral, aside from the eel incident which could _almost_ be counted as friendly for her part. At any rate it didn't suggest she recognized his role in her capture.

He cleared his throat roughly and turned to a painting of a knight lounging against a tree. "Tell the others I'm searching for a small child in a blue and green dress. She's just taken a potion and needs to be found as soon as possible."

The knight stretched and yawned. "What? Oh, she did run this way a bit ago. I'll let the others know."

Severus turned down the corridor, his gaze darting right and left as he walked. The paintings at the corner shrugged at him helplessly.

_Worthless._

Turning his attention inward, he thought back to when he was small and frightened. Fleeing to a quiet secluded place would be the most appealing. Unfortunately, that could be anywhere in the castle right now.

If she was even inside the castle.

"Blast that Dumbledore," he muttered. "Picking up broken strays and making them other people's problems. Should have taken her to St. Mungo's."

Filch's beseeching cries of, "Mrs. Norris! Where are you my sweet?" came echoing down the corridor. The stooping old caretaker rounded the corner, trembling and out of breath.

"Professor," he breathed. "I need your help. That little, that horrid rat took my Mrs. Norris. First she tried to poison her, and now she's kidnapped my cat!"

Lip curling, a wave of relief swept over him. Perhaps this would be over with sooner than he thought. "We'll find your cat, Argus. I doubt the child has any ill intent. She's not even a student after all. Where did you last see them?"

"They went this way," he pointed a gnarled finger down the corridor. "I know she's being held hostage by that brat, or she would have come right back when I called for her."

"Let me handle this, she's to be taken straight to Dumbledore."

"I'm going to wring that scrawny little neck when I find her."

"No," he let his voice drop to the silky, practiced timbre that promised punishment beyond a student's wildest imaginings. "You will leave her to me."

This seemed to appease the old man, who grunted and shuffled along behind him.

* * *

Mrs. Norris followed the curious child through the halls until they entered the library and came to a stop beneath a dusty table in the back corner. Her nostrils flared in curiosity. The little girl reeked of distress, which was something the cat honed in on. Usually distressed children meant rules were being broken somewhere nearby, and her dear Argus needed to be kept alert to that.

This child was different though. The old cat did not like children and did not care for most adults, but she'd never encountered one this tiny. It was certainly different than the adolescent humans that swarmed the castle for months at a time, their sour sweat filling the halls, voices shrieking and laughing and tormenting her poor Argus.

This child smelled different. That was all.

Still, something made the cat linger longer than she should have. Maybe it was the eel she'd been gifted earlier that week, or perhaps the sheer novelty of the situation. Tentatively, she put a paw on the soft fabric draped over the girl's knee and sniffed at her face. Then after a moment's consideration, licked a salty tear off the end of her nose.

"H-hello," the girl whispered in a wavering voice._ "Neko ga koishi."_

Mrs. Norris didn't understand most of the words that were just spoken, but felt the intent behind them and managed a rumbling purr that shook her bony little body. Tiny hands gingerly touched her face and moved under her chin, rubbing just so.

It was nice. Not as nice as Argus, but still nice. Much nicer than the nasty students she usually dealt with.

Her ears swiveled, flattening against her head as she caught the old man's voice down some distant hall. Meowing softly, the cat gave the small child a parting bunt on the chin.

"T-thank you," the girl stammered.

Turning and flicking her tail, the cat sauntered back toward the man calling her name.

* * *

"Mrs. Norris! You're alive!" Mr Filch abandoned all sense of dignity and dove at the animal. Sweeping her up into his arms he frantically checking her over for any injury she might have sustained.

"Really Argus, I told you she would be fine. Let her down so she can lead us to the girl. I'd like to get this over with and enjoy what's little is left of my holiday."

The old caretaker glared at Severus balefully for a moment. "I just had to be sure, Professor. You can't be too careful around those brats." Lovingly, he lowered the cat to the floor. "There's a good girl Mrs. Norris. Now go on and show us where that nasty little child is hiding."

The cat flicked her tail primly and led them to the dark and silent library. It was here that Severus bid the caretaker good bye. The old man scurried off clutching the wretched animal.

Severus flicked his wand, lighting the end up. He stalked through the towering shelves, watching for any movement or misplaced shadows in the cast light.

"Miss-, Child," he said, careful to temper his voice. Careful to control it, remembering acutely just how terrifying his own father could sound to a small child when shouting. Most students only experienced the fear and intimidation Severus chose to inspire with his voice, but he could evoke calm when the situation called for calm.

_"S-sensei?"  
_

He tamped down the irritation that rose at her use of her native language and followed her voice. "Try harder. I know the potion is working. You will call me 'Professor', not 'sensei'."

"P-professor Snape?"

"Very good," he said in a measured way, inching closer to where she crouched beneath a corner table as if approaching an untamed kneazle. "What should I call you? I can't very well call you 'child' forever. What name do you go by?"

He kept nattering on, far more than he liked. But without that nattering the potion wouldn't take proper effect. Their limited window of time was rapidly closing.

She didn't reply right away, so he kept speaking.

"The explosion you heard earlier was not harmful. It was merely a stupid toy called a cracker. They explode when pulled apart and cover everything in obnoxious glitter while toys for blithering idiots come sailing out. Were you startled by it?"

He felt stupid for asking something so obvious out loud, even though she needed to hear these words in order to learn them. She couldn't articulate things she didn't know, but he didn't know how much longer he could tolerate this one sided narration. Skimming the surrounding bookshelves for stories with dialogue, he settled on a dusty copy of _The Tales of Beedle the Bard._ With a sigh, he flicked his wrist causing the book to fly up into his hand. She flinched visibly at his use of magic.

"Don't be getting all twitchy now," he said in a voice that was much more soothing than he would have liked to use. "You're not cooperating at the moment, so I'm going to read this book out loud.

Mentally cursing whatever forces had conspired to put him in this position, he cleared his throat and began.

"The first story is '_The Wizard and the Hopping Pot_'."

* * *

Sayuri crouched under the table, small hands wrapped around the smooth wooden legs. The bottoms of the table legs were metal, and shaped like animal claws clutching cold round balls like big glass marbles or something.

Snape-sensei, or rather Professor Snape, was seated in a nearby chair. His deep velvet voice rose and fell with the words. Somehow snatches and phrases continuously broke through the fog of ignorance and entered her understanding.

_Lost or stolen._

_Grievously ill._

_Helped the villagers._

She hadn't paid much attention to his chakra in the forest with Dumbledore's both dazzling and terrifying her, but since coming to the castle and especially right now it held her full attention. It felt both viscous and shimmery, like the flask of silver mercury in kaa-san's desk that Sayuri used to like swishing around when kaa-san wasn't looking.

Two more stories went by, the new vocabulary pounding itself into her consciousness. He had gotten partway through a more gruesome story where a dark wizard was licking the heart of a murdered girl, when he paused and cleared his throat. He muttered something unintelligible and his chakra flared lightly. Then she heard him sip some water.

She decided the break in the story might be a good time to try answering his earlier question. "My name-" she trailed off, still unsure if she should offer it. But, he had said she couldn't always go by child. He was right. "My name is Sayuri." The words felt strange in her mouth.

There was a beat of silence before he replied. "Is that your given name? Or your family name?"

"It is my name." The words dropped from her tongue thickly, and she knew she wasn't quite saying them right.

"In this country it is customary to address others by their family name unless you are very close friends."

She hesitated. If Dumbledore knew of Uchiha Madara, then he must know of Konoha. Whether it was Akahane or Uchiha, she couldn't risk giving any family name. "No family. Just me."

"Very well then, Miss Sayuri. Shall I continue?"

"Yes." Relief washed over her when he hadn't pressed for a family name.

"Yes _sir,_" he corrected. "Or you may say, yes _professor_."

"Yes, sir."

Seeming pleased, he continued to read _The Warlock's Hairy Heart _out loud. The ending was kind of a downer. She rested her chin on her knees and frowned.

"Was that too gory for you?" he said, a sneer creeping into his voice.

"No," she said. "But that girl stupid."

"The correct way to say it is, _that girl was stupid_. What would you have done?"

"I would set fire on him." Sayuri paused, still in thought. "And stab him in neck."

"Stab him in _the_ neck," he corrected. His chakra flared with unexpected mirth, but there was no outward expression of it. "I suppose that's an acceptable response when someone is trying to kill you."

The summon cat she'd met before had been sitting nearby in the library. It began to approach, then halted near Professor Snape. _Maybe that's his cat,_ she thought hopefully. _Maybe he has a contract with cat summons, and he could teach me how to get one too._

Her hopes were dashed spectacularly when the cat's chakra twisted and grew into the warm breezy feeling woman she'd sat across from at dinner. She jumped back, clunking her head on the underside of the table.

_But how? _That was _nothing_ like a henge worked. Henge didn't change someone's chakra.

"Careful Minerva, you're going to give her a concussion."

Sayuri crawled out from under the table, reassured by Koeda's tickling under her ear that she hadn't accidentally squished him.

"How?" Sayuri asked.

"What is it my dear?" the older woman said in a kindly voice.

"You." Sayuri searched out the words which came to her mind in a way she didn't quite understand yet. "You a cat. Then not a cat. How?" She stood and dusted her skirt off.

"That is my specialty. I teach transfiguration. I am curious how you could tell since you could not see me transform."

Sayuri hesitated. She did not want to betray her strengths to people who were still complete strangers, no matter how nice they seemed. "I hear you."

"I understand. Well, thank you for the eel earlier this week. You left dinner before I had a chance to give you your gift," she said.

Sayuri found another item nudged into her hands. Feeling it all over, she was delighted to find a soft toy with two triangle ears, cool glassy eyes, and a long fluffy tail.

"A cat," she whispered.

"You seem to be fond of them."

"What color cat?"

"White, my dear."

"White cat," a shock of emotion washed over her unexpectedly. She bit her lip to stop it from trembling.

"Is something the matter?" the older woman rested a hand lightly on her shoulder.

She took a deep breath, steeling herself while giving the toy an extra tight squeeze. "No. I love it."

* * *

Thankfully Minerva was more than happy to step into the role of conversing with the child. Mundane things about some old cat, and questions about transfiguration. Severus interrupted periodically to correct the girl's grammar, disappointed that the modifications he'd made hadn't naturally sorted out her sentence structure.

Perhaps one fewer magpie feathers was called for, though he'd need to balance that out somehow.

The three of them stepped out into the corridor. Severus trailed behind, wondering why she'd hesitated to give her family name. Surely she knew it. The admission records for the school had documented it. Then again, Albus or Minerva could sort that out. He was looking forward to settling down with his books and a nice bottle of nettle wine in the privacy of his study.

They escorted her back to her room, a converted adjunct office. She bowed politely to both of them before closing herself in for the night.

"Well, that was the most exciting Christmas I've had in years," Minerva declared. "Severus, are you planning to join us in the staff room? Filius was hoping for a few rounds of exploding snap."

He rolled his eyes. "I'd rather find another live eel in my pocket."

Smiling, the older woman glanced back at the closed door. "I must congratulate you on your potion. It worked wonderfully."

"Not as wonderfully as I'd hoped," he shoved his hands into his pockets, which were thankfully eel-free. "But it was passable."

"That's all right. She has the basics now. Her grammar and things will sort themselves out with practice. I will confess, finding you reading stories out loud to a small child was the last sight I expected to see this Christmas." She looked at him over the rim of her glasses. "Or ever."

"How long were you eavesdropping?"

"Not eavesdropping," she huffed. "How could I interrupt such a rare scene? It's been a long time since I've heard _The Fountain of Fair Fortune_ and _The Wizard's Hairy Heart _read so well_._"

Not a word Minerva," he growled. "Not to a single soul."

He shot her a venomous look when she simply looked at him fondly. "You know I never imagined you would be good with very young children, but I suppose you do treat your Slytherins well enough. If you ever have one of your own-"

"I will never," he snarled. "I despise the helpless little beasts and will never willingly subject myself to the care and feeding of one."

"Well that one is hardly helpless," she snorted. "If she attends school here I'm curious to see what house she'll be sorted into. She certainly is fearless considering her condition and situation."

"She has more cunning than bravado," he grumbled. "Albus and I found her living in a wiggentree in the Forbidden Forest. She'd recruited every bowtruckle in the vicinity to act in her defense."

"Oh my," Minerva's eyebrows rose in surprise. "That explains how she survived anyway. As long as she was in that tree, no dark creatures could have harmed her."

* * *

Somewhere deep in Kiri, Uchiha Itachi sat cross legged on a log. Black robes embroidered with stylized red clouds fell around him. Moisture from the thick fog beaded up on his marred hitae-ate, and dripped from the ends of his black hair.

Silent wing beats slashed through the fog, one of his crows returning. He raised a forearm for it to perch on, the fabric of his sleeve rustling lightly under the bird's weight.

"She finally asked us about sending a message to Sasuke," the crow sighed. "I gave her the answer you said to give."

"What was her response?" he asked.

"Lots of swearing," the bird said. "She sent me away. It's been more than a month since she summoned any of us. She believes we'll betray her in favor of you."

"That's fine," Itachi said.

"Maybe for you," the bird scowled. "But you're not the only one who made a promise to Shisui."

"As long as she never tells Sasuke what Danzo did to her," he said. "I don't care."

* * *

**Author's Note: Thanks for reading along. I think I'm starting to feel well enough to start working on Dog Ninja again, but am still going to continue this story so hopefully there will be updates to both even though barely anyone is reading this one. Our entire state is on home confinement due to the coronavirus outbreak so it's not like I'll be able to do much else, ha ha. **


	11. A New Home

To say Sasuke was frustrated was an understatement. For weeks after the attack he tried his best to investigate on the very slim chance that she might still be alive, but the ANBU had thoroughly cleaned up the scene and now a new family had moved in. The new tenants even had the audacity to put fresh potted flowers out on the balcony as if nothing bad had even happened there.

It was late evening near the third training ground. Sasuke peered through the leaves from where he was perched, watching the ANBU carefully. It was the same dog masked man with stupid grey hair that had taken him home the night Sayuri disappeared.

Muscles in his legs bunched up beneath him as he prepared to confront the ANBU when a voice behind him said, "Yo."

__When did he-__

Sasuke spun around to stare into the round black eyes of the ANBU dog mask looking down at him. _One of them is a clone,_ he thought._ Or both of them._

"Why are you following me?" the ANBU asked.

"I want answers," Sasuke said.

The man's unkempt hair shifted as he tilted his head slightly.

"What happened to Akahane Sayuri? Was her body ever found?"

"ANBU investigations are classified," the man hummed. "Brats like you should stay out of the way."

Sasuke clenched his fists, festering anger swirling inside him as he glared up into the man's mask. "I _won't_ stay out of the way. Sayuri-chan is my friend and I _will_ find her."

The man was silent, giving no outward sign that he'd registered what Sasuke said at first. Sasuke turned to leave, when a soft voice murmured, "A clearance request could be submitted to Hokage-sama. Go through the administrative section."

Sasuke blinked, and the ANBU was gone.

The administrative section was a stucco building with tiled roof adjacent to the academy. The next day he couldn't wait to give his classmates the slip during their lunch break, and eagerly filled out the request form. Under "Reason For Request" he paused, then carefully wrote:

_'Clan Business'_

A bored chuunin filed it away, and Sasuke returned to the academy for his afternoon classes.

He almost didn't hear the questions Iruka-sensei asked, he was so preoccupied with the request. When would the hokage see it? Would they grant it? What would the report say? It must say _something_ useful if the ANBU hinted he should request it.

A week passed without any word from the hokage office. Then a second week. By the third week, Sasuke couldn't wait any longer and went back in to the administrative section. He stood before a different bored chuunin seated at the intake desk.

"What is it kid?" he drawled.

"I filed a records request almost three weeks ago. What is the status?"

"Name?"

"Uchiha Sasuke."

The chuunin brushed shaggy brown hair out of his eyes, open a scroll and squinted. "It says here the request was denied."

"_What?_ Does it say why?"

"Nope." He turned to rummage through a file and pulled out the request form. There was a big red stamp across it. Sasuke reached across the desk and snatched it from his hands. "Hey! Calm down kid!" the chuunin snapped.

Sasuked stared it it, his hands crinkling the paper as they tightened.

_How dare they. How dare that wrinkly old crackpot deny this!_

"Hey get back here! You can't go up there!" the chuunin's voice echoed behind him as he sprinted away. Leaping up the stairs several at a time, he slid past another pair of chuunin in the hallway and shouldered his way through the hokage's office door.

The old man sat behind his desk, warm musty pipe tobacco filling the air.

"Uchiha Sasuke, what an unexpected surprise." He smiled pleasantly, his mouth curving around the pipe between his lips. He set down the papers in his hand and smoothed them out. "You look troubled."

Gritting his teeth, Sasuke thrust the request form at him. "Why was this denied?" he growled. "I need access to the files about Akahane Sayuri's disappearance." He wished he knew her mom's name so the request would sound more legitimate. Then added, "and her mother's death."

"I'm afraid I can't authorize you to view those records," he said sternly. "You're still only an academy student. But if you have any more information about that night you can tell me now."

"I have a right to know." Sasuke's shoulder's trembled. "I have every right. My father was the head of the Uchiha clan, which means I'm now the head."

"What does that have to do with the Akahanes?" The hokage arched an eyebrow.

"Sayuri-chan, is the daughter of Uchiha Shisui. She's an Uchiha like me. She survived, and now she's gone. You can at least tell me if they found her body."

If the Hokage was expecting some grand new revelation, it certainly wasn't that. He caught his pipe as it clattered out of his mouth and sprayed hot ash across his paperwork.

"I can tell you there was no body found."

Sasuke exhaled, some of the tension leaving him. "So there's a chance she might still be alive."

The old man steepled his fingers, sighing. "Anything is possible at this point, but I don't want to get your hopes up. Whatever happened to her, she was badly wounded before disappearing. You know that much already." He rose from his chair and went to gaze out the window, deep in thought. "I wish I had known before this happened who she really was. We could have found a better way to protect her. The tragedy that took your clan was a terrible blow to the village, and her survival would have lessened it a little. Shisui was a powerful shinobi."

"I think, maybe Itachi came back. That he came back to kill her after her sharingan awoke." There was a desperate accusation in Sasuke's voice. "He must have found out somehow that he'd missed her."

"There was no evidence of Itachi's return, but I will have my ANBU investigate all possibilities. And considering this new information about her parentage, I will inform you if we learn anything new."

Realizing this was the best he was going to get for now, Sasuke inclined his head. "Thank you, Hokage-sama."

Hiruzen watched the young Uchiha retreat from his office.

The attack made more sense with this new revelation. If there had been another young Uchiha who escaped the massacre, he could think of one other person in the village who would be extremely interested.

Danzo.

The question was, had she suffered the same fate as her father? Or had Danzo forcibly recruited her? Hiruzen had ordered ROOT be disbanded after the massacre, but suspected his old teammate still kept it operating on some level. He would need to find out, and soon. If the latter, she could still be saved.

Overwhelming guilt for what had happened to the Uchiha haunted him. It would be a great mercy for both Sasuke and Itachi if Shisui's child still lived. For that matter, Itachi may know what became of her. He was certain that if anyone in the Uchiha clan was aware Shisui had a child, it would be Itachi. If nobody else knew of her, he couldn't blame Itachi for deliberately overlooking her when Danzo ordered him to kill them all.

* * *

It was only a few days after the holiday feast that Sayuri moved out of the castle.

Dumbledore had loaded her into a big covered sled pulled by some strange seeming animals, and together they'd ridden on a winding icy road past a cottage at the edge of the forest, through the village Miu the traitorous oversized crow had mentioned, until it finally skidded to a stop in front of a building on the far outskirts.

She was pretty sure it was a village anyway. There were people moving around in a pattern that suggested streets, clumping up here and there. If this was a village and they were clumped inside buildings, then she was delighted that these structures didn't impede her ability to "see" her surroundings the way the stones of the castle did.

Part of her wished they had walked, it would have been easier to get a feel for the people and everything. She didn't like not knowing exactly where she was in relation to the castle, but it seemed that if she went around the edge of the forest she could find it, the lake, and even her tree again.

Wearing her warm cloak with Koeda tucked inside the collar, she rubbed at the comforting pressure of the blindfold and hugged the soft cat toy in her arms. Her nose wrinkled when they slipped inside the door of the building. It was warm and smelled a lot like livestock and something she would later find out was old stale alcohol.

There were three people inside already. Two were huddled at separate tables in opposite corners, their chakras dampened with too much to drink. The third felt rutted and craggy, with chakra that spread and filled the room like Dumbledore's. An animal, like maybe a goat or a sheep, was fast asleep on a tabletop nearby.

"Aberforth, may I introduce Miss Sayuri?" Dumbledore said pleasantly.

The man's chakra hardened, and he didn't say anything. If her hold on the toy cat could have gotten tighter, it would have.

"Hello Mr. Aberforth," she ventured, in a very small voice.

"Don't know why a little girl like her would want to be in a place like this. Why don't you ask Rosmerta instead?" the new man muttered in a gruff voice.

"Rosmerta has quite enough to handle running The Three Broomsticks right now. Besides, you're more experienced at _this,"_ Dumbledore replied.

While they talked, Sayuri edged over to the table with the animal on it. She liked animals. They were full of nature energy, and this animal had a tranquility to it that made her feel more calm even if he did stink like a dirty litterbox.

"That's Matey. You like goats?" the new man asked.

"I think so. I never met one before."

"Go ahead and give him a pat. He doesn't bite."

She reached out, trying to be mindful of the fact that not only Dumbledore and Aberforth were watching, but the men in the corners had started taking interest. Matey pushed a velvety nose into her palm. His warm breath tickled. Her fingers felt out the gummy fur on his face, the way his eyes sort of bugged out, and found his bony forehead where the broad ridged horns began. Not knowing what goats liked, she just gave his head a nice rub as if he was a cat.

"Well I suppose you're all right," he said gruffly. "Matey likes you anyway."

Matey made a nasal, nickering sort of sound in agreement.

She tried to ignore the hushed conversation Dumbledore was having with the man, instead concentrating on rubbing Matey around the base of his horns. He had some funny little dewlap things on the sides of his neck too. Her nose wrinkled again. The dirty litterbox smell was now was all over her hand.

Mr. Aberforth didn't seem very eager to have her there. She wasn't sure if she liked it much either, but she could deal with it for now. If he agreed to it.

Finally they seemed to come to some sort of conclusion.

"Miss Sayuri, would you like to stay here with Mr. Aberforth?" Dumbledore asked, his voice kind as always. "He says he has a room you may stay in."

"Not as if I ever have enough patrons to fill them up," Aberforth grumbled.

She straightened, folding both arms back around the toy cat and dipped into a bow. "Please take care of me, Mr. Aberforth."

"Alright then, no need for that," he said in a rough voice. His chakra softened a bit. "Follow me up the stairs here. Watch your step, I'll show you where your room is."

Dumbledore called out that he would have the rest of her things brought down from the castle, and promptly disappeared. The two men in the corners sank back into their alcohol induced stupors as she slipped up the stairs after Mr. Aberforth.

"This will be your room. It's right next to mine. If you need anything or anyone bothers you, just shout. I'll be close by somewhere."

"Thank you, sir," she bowed again.

"None of this 'sir' business," he growled. "_Sir_ is what people called my father. And none of this 'Mr. Aberforth'."

Sayuri paused in thought. Aberforth was a big mouthful for her, and she was pretty sure she'd butchered it when she tried to say it earlier anyway. He didn't seem to be very formal, keeping goats indoors and all that. His voice sounded rough and old.

"Can I call you Jiji?" she asked.

"Jiji? What's that stand for?"

"It means gramps. Or do you say it like, grandpa? I never had a gramps before. Or I can call you gramps?"

"Jiji is fine," he said. "If you call me gramps that'll make me feel old."

"Thank you Jiji!"

He bit back a snort of laughter, and shooed her into the little room. It didn't take long for several owls to appear at the window with the rest of her bundled clothing, and a big piece of fabric that she felt all around the edge of and recognized as the tablecloth she'd torn her blindfold from.

After she'd tucked it away in a little wooden dresser with drawers that stuck when she tried to open and close them, she flopped down on the lumpy bed and rolled onto her back. A few moments later, her panicked shriek had Jiji flinging the door open.

"What is it?" he shouted, chakra flaring at the end of one arm.

"S-something bit me," she pointed at the bed from where she crouched on the windowsill.

"Oh, that'll just be the bedbugs. Don't mind them. They'll just take a little nip out oh yeh once in a while."

She shivered and pressed her back to the cold glass. "I don't like bugs."

"How does someone who doesn't like bugs get along out the Forbidden Forest then?"

Koeda tickled her neck. She reached up and pulled him out of her collar then cradled him in the palm of her hand. "Will he eat bedbugs?"

Jiji came further into the room and seemed to be crouching near her. "I don't see why not. Why don't you let him have a go at it?"

Sayuri slid down off the windowsill and gingerly set him on the blanket. "Go Koeda. Go eat bugs."

"Koeda, that's a nice name."

"It means twig."

"Fits him too. Are you going to be all right now?"

"Yes, sorry for the scream."

"S'allright. Now, the sun is setting. It always goes down bit early in winter but you should get settled for the night anyway. I'll get you a sandwich. You can eat it while your friend there checks the bed over, and then you should be getting to sleep. The loo is down the hall. I'll be sleeping in the next room and Matey is downstairs if you need anything."

A knot of warmth settled in her stomach. It was all so different from her mother, from her apartment in Konoha, from the academy she'd grown used to. But she thought she might like this village. Jiji seemed nice. There was nothing trapping her there. And Koeda was already crunching away at the the first of the bedbugs he'd detected.

For the first time in a long time, the ghost of a genuine smile flitted across her face. "Thank you, Jiji."

* * *

**Author's Note: Thank you so much to everyone who left such kind reviews! It means a lot to me and is really helpful to hear what is being done right. Just about ready for the time skip. Phew. **


	12. Cauldrons and Motorbikes

Sarutobi Hiruzen spread the files on the Akahane murder and disappearance out on his desk, pondering what Sasuke had disclosed about Sayuri-chan.

It made a twisted sort of sense that Shisui would conceal the existence of his child from both clan and village.

For one, Akahane Hibari and Uchiha Shisui had never married.

For two, the village had treated the Uchiha clan with such contempt and distrust after the kyuubi attack that left the 4th hokage and countless other dead, including his own beloved Biwako. The Uchiha had been forced to relocate from their original homes in the village center to the outskirts of the village.

If the clan had been aware of Sayuri-chan's existence, the elders would have insisted she stay in the Uchiha district with them. Yet her mother, being a refugee of Uzu, would not have wanted her daughter to be taken away or be forced to move for the sake of the Uchiha clan.

This didn't even take into account the vast number of personal enemies Shisui had made during the war who would have posed a danger to her.

A familiar, rhythmic thumping signaled his old teammate's approach.

"Danzo," he said without looking up from the papers. "Have a seat."

"What was it you wanted to discuss?"

Hiruzen looked up then, into the deeply lined face of his old friend. No, the man who had once been a friend. Who had tried to kill him. Who had taken it upon himself to have one of the village's founding clans snuffed out.

"You knew Shisui had a child."

Danzo regarded at him steadily. "I learned of her existence."

"And then you took it upon yourself to have her mother killed, and arranged for her disappearance."

"Make no mistake," Danzo said in a soft voice. "My primary goal was for the child's death. Our agreement with Itachi for was Sasuke to be the sole survivor of the massacre. Her mother's death was an unfortunate collateral loss."

"And is Sayuri dead?" Hiruzen stared at him coldly, fury building in his gut.

"Most likely. Her mother managed to call upon a summon in her last moments. It took the child's body. It is very unlikely she survived her wounds."

"Danzo," he was at a loss for words for a moment, grappling with barely contained rage that was a culmination of Danzo's past actions. Actions that had cost the village dearly in both power, and in spirit. "This is unforgivable. Sasuke knew she was of his clan. If he investigates this matter too deeply, he may uncover the truth of the massacre."

"I have never come to you for forgiveness," Danzo said easily, his hands resting on his knees. "I know you do not agree with my methods, but I only have the good of the village in mind. I do the things you are unwilling to do, for the sake of the village."

A strange calm began to wash over Hiruzen. Almost a hypnotic calm. One that lulled him away from the rage that was keeping him sharp. Keeping him alert.

"These things must be done for the sake of the village," Danzo repeated. "For everyone's sake, some must be sacrificed. The branches of the tree of Konoha must be pruned and cast into the fire to keep it healthy. No disease can be allowed to fester."

Hiruzen's eyes glazed strangely. "It must be pruned," he repeated, "to stay healthy."

Danzo's visible eye glimmered in triumph. "Yes, my friend. And since you cannot, _I_ will do the pruning."

* * *

_3 Years Later_

* * *

Nothing could truly make up for having her flesh and blood family violently torn away from her, but spending three years in a place like Hogsmeade with a doting yet permissive grownup like Jiji looking after her was more than she could have hoped for.

There were other children in the village, but most were either younger or older than her and not particularly interested in a weird girl wearing a blindfold and speaking broken English. Jiji had baby goats though, and the goat kids were more than happy to accompany her on trips into the forest so that was all right. And her English had gradually gotten better.

Today wasn't a day for exploring the woods however. She clutched a thick piece of parchment in her fingers. The sturdy boots she'd gotten for Christmas three years ago had been outgrown long ago. She had replaced them with a flimsy pair of trainers that she could feel the worn street cobbles through easily as she walked the familiar path through the ambling streets to Gladrags. They were also much quieter to walk in, which suited her better.

A little bell on the door tinkled merrily as she entered.

"Hullo?" Sayuri called. "Can someone help me with my school things?"

"Oh certainly dear, I've got plenty of school robes. Step up on this stool here." A warm, energetic young woman gently took Sayuri by the arm and guided her to it. There was a flicker of chakra and wisps of air blowing past her cheeks as a little tailor's tape zipped around her body, taking measurements.

"We also offer protective charms. Would you like any on them?"

Sayuri cocked her head in interest. "What kinds do you have?"

"Oh, we can put fire protection charms on them. I recommend that if you're brewing potions or dueling. We can also do a water repelling charm."

"How about both?" she said, thinking of the all the time she liked to spend in the lake, and the way she tended to char her dresses when practicing _katon _techniques.

A few minutes later, Sayuri was fishing several coins out of her pockets for a small stack of clothing wrapped in crinkly brown paper.

"Where would you like it delivered dear?"

"The Hog's Head please."

The woman's chakra swirled in disapproval. "Wouldn't you rather be staying somewhere more fun like The Three Broomsticks? I'm sure Rosmerta has the space."

"That's all right ma'am. Also, could you please look at my letter and tell me where I should go next? I can't-" she let the words trail off.

"Oh of course you poor thing," she rushed. "All right, there's a long list of books here. Of course you can't-, but maybe there's a spell. Why don't you get your cauldron and vials first? Ceridwen's Cauldrons is closest."

"I can find that, thank you ma'am."

Sayuri left, growling in irritation at the pity radiating from the clerk once she was outside. She didn't need pity! She was going to grow up to be a kick ass kunoichi, witch, _whatever. _She was going to get her eyes back, and help Sasuke with whatever he needed accomplishing because that's what family and friends do for each other.

And most importantly, she was going to murder those men that took her parents from her. The feel of their chakra was burned into her memory. Eyes or not, she would find them eventually.

Ceridwen's Cauldrons was only one street over. Mr. Morfran the shopkeeper selected one from the pile of pewter cauldrons on display and sold it to her. Next she stopped at the bookstore and ordered the textbooks to be delivered, feeling that it was a complete waste of money considering she couldn't even see the text much less know how to read it even if she could see.

A familiar, liquid metallic presence that she'd felt in the village occasionally approached once she was back out in the street.

"Well well, if it isn't Miss Sayuri," said a smooth, low voice. "I see you've gotten your letter. Out shopping for supplies?"

This was the first time he'd spoken to her since she'd left the castle to live with Jiji. She'd realized long ago that most wizards hadn't developed their sensory abilities to the extent she had, and that running out to say hello to Professor McGonagall or anyone else visiting The Three Broomsticks would be a dead giveaway of her strongest asset. Hagrid was the only staff member at the school who regularly visited the Hog's Head.

"Hello Professor Snape," she chirped. "How are you today?"

"As well as can be expected," he drawled. "It appears your grammar has finally corrected itself."

"Yes, sir. I've had a lot of practice speaking. Thank you for brewing that potion."

"That potion was called _Lingua Nova. _You might have the skill to brew it by your 5th year if you aren't a complete dunderhead. Let me see that cauldron," he said waspishly.

Sayuri held it out and felt it lifted from her grasp.

"Did you get this from Ceridwen's? Come with me then."

She nodded, and trotted to keep up with Snape's long strides. After rounding a couple of corners, Snape pushed the shop door open. Sayuri caught it and eased it closed behind her.

"Oh, good morning Professor Snape."

The potions master swept ahead of her straight to the counter, placing the cauldron on it with a soft clunk.

"Tell me Morfran, do you sell substandard cauldrons to all my students? Or only the blind ones?"

"W-what?" he spluttered. "I would never take advantage of-, I assure you this cauldron is identical to all the other #2s we have on display. You may check for yourself."

Sayuri froze in place. The pressure in the room increased subtly. Snape stepped over to where the pewter cauldrons were stacked, the metal clunking dully as he shifted through them.

"Surely they are adequate for first year students," Morfran insisted.

"These cauldrons are nowhere near thick enough. I doubt they even meet ministry regulation," Snape said with a sneer in his voice.

Sayuri listened with fascination as the professor's voice softened, while he subtly leaked _just_ enough killing intent to make the shop keeper squirm.

"Mr. Morfran," he continued silkily. "You greatly underestimate the capacity of these little monsters to turn even a simple calming draught into a volatile explosive. If I_ ever_ see one of these cauldrons in my classroom, you may be certain the ministry will open an investigation into your source. Avoiding the proper inspections and import tariffs could become _quite_ an expensive mistake."

"Y-yes, professor. Certainly, I see your concern."

"Now, surely you have an acceptable cauldron this young lady may exchange the defective one for?"

"Just a moment," Mr. Morfran croaked, then hurried into a back room. He emerged a few minutes later, slightly panting. The cauldron made a heavier clunk as it was set on the counter. "This one is a premium model. No extra charge."

"Come get your cauldron girl."

Sayuri reached up and felt for it on the counter, her hand passing over the slightly pitted surface of the original cauldron before landing on the smooth, cool surface of its replacement. She slipped her fingers through the handle and carefully hefted it off the counter. It was twice as heavy as the original.

"Thank you Mr. Morfran, Professor Snape," she said, bowing lightly to each of them.

"If you manage to melt _that_ cauldron I shall be extremely disappointed in you," Snape said.

"Professor, will we be learning healing potions this year?"

"Simple ones. There are advanced elixirs capable of stimulating the regrowth of damaged or missing tissue, used in treatments such as Skelegrow. Am I to assume this is regarding your vision?"

Sayuri drew back in surprise and said quickly, "No I, I don't want _n__ew _ones. I'm going to get them back. I mean," she clapped a hand over her blindfold feeling stupid for saying that much. Then mumbled, "My mother was a healer. That's what I want to do."

Really medinin, or a field medic. That would help Sasuke the most, help provide the clan a solid foundation in the future, but she would learn what she could here. Her old classmates were probably graduating the academy now as fully fledged shinobi. She was so far behind them the thought was depressing.

Professor Snape was quiet for a long, awkward moment. "If you have aspirations of being a healer, then I suggest you work extremely hard in my class. I require a score of Outstanding on the OWLS exams to be admitted to NEWT level potions." With that, he turned and swept out of the shop. Sayuri followed his exit, but then turned the opposite direction back toward the Hog's Head.

She wasn't entirely sure what all the talk about newts and owls was, but he'd made it clear that doing well in potions was necessary to learn what she wanted to learn. That made sense anyway. Slackers couldn't become healers or medinin.

As she got nearer to the inn, there was a familiar presence that made her speed up a bit. Sayuri always liked when Hagrid came to drink and play cards. He was a person, but felt different than other people beyond the usual variety among human beings. His warm, expansive presence blended seamlessly with the dormice in his pockets, fresh twigs in his beard, and mud caked on his boots. It was similar to the nature energy that the hulking oni-creatures in the forest were steeped in, only Hagrid didn't smell like a backed up loo someone had given up on unclogging.

Plus he was just plain nice. Jiji called him 'a good egg'.

She clanged through the door, lugging the cauldron along.

"Good mornin' Sayuri. Did yeh get yer Hogwart's letter yet?" The bench by the wall made a very strained creaking sound as Hagrid shifted his weight to look at her. Since it was so early, he was their only patron.

"Yes Hagrid," she smiled in his direction. "I got most of my school things here in Hogsmeade already."

Jiji was behind the counter, glasses clanking as he wiped them and put them up. She was pretty certain by the smell that Jiji never changed out the rag he used for wiping dishes, so she tried to swap it out once every month or two when he wasn't paying attention.

"Hagrid, you wouldn't mind watching the place for a bit while I take Sayuri here out to buy her wand?" Jiji asked in a gruff voice.

"Sorry Aberforth, Dumbledore gave me an urgent mission and I can't delay it. It's going ter take a day or two. Mebbe after that I could."

"What kind of mission?" he asked suspiciously.

"Well, that's top secret it is. But he's also having me deliver this ter lil' Harry Potter." He pulled a rustle of paper from his coat. "Those ruddy muggles he's living with haven' let him get his letter yet yeh know."

Sayuri's ears perked up at the name. It was familiar. She'd heard it around Hogsmeade before. It would be very nice to meet another kid she'd be starting school with before the year started. "Can I come?" she asked, fully expecting him to say no.

"Well," Hagrid scratched his beard. "Actually, s'not a bad idea. I'll be in Diagon Alley after. We can jes nip over ter Ollivander's quick while I'm there if Aberforth don' mind."

"Can I go Jiji?" Sayuri bounced on the balls of her feet. "Please?"

Aberforth was quiet for a moment. "I suppose it's all right. Just stay close to Hagrid and don't go off with anyone else. Suits me fine, I'd rather avoid Diagon Alley right now with all the extra crowds."

She jumped up. "Yeah! Thank you!"

Aberforth rummaged around in a drawer, and placed seven heavy coins in her hand along with a handful of little ones. "The galleons are for your wand," he said sternly. "The rest is for food."

"I'm plannin' ter head out right after lunch. Harry's birthday cake is coolin' off back at me hut."

"Oh!" She wrung her hands. "I should bring a present for him too then." She ran up the stairs, taking them three at a time and unlocked her bedroom door. Setting the cauldron on her bed, she rummaged through her drawer of treasures to see if there was anything an 11 year old boy might like.

Her fingers sifted through some weirdly shaped mushrooms she'd found in the forest, a collection of unicorn hairs wound up like a small ball of twine, smooth rocks she'd retrieved from the bottom of the lake, a merman's discarded spearhead, a neat knife she'd sort of stolen from a drunk patron after Jiji threw him out for fighting (he'd left it stabbed into the wall), until they closed around a pair of brass and leather omniocululars she'd found while cleaning a room after a foreign wizard had checked out of the inn.

The man had booked a couple of nights so he could watch a Hogwarts quidditch game. Sayuri tried going to one once. It was too noisy and overwhelming, and she coudn't see anything anyway so she'd left.

Buffing those on her sleeve, she bounced back down the stairs and up to Hagrid. "Do these look nice enough for a gift?" she asked anxiously.

"They're practically new. Wrap 'em up, I'm sure he'll be glad ter have 'em."

"Thanks Hagrid!"

Back in her room, she pulled some crinkled paper out of her drawer and carefully folded it around the omnioculars. Then she tugged a strand of unicorn hair off the ball she'd made, they were very strong so she didn't need more than that, and snugly tied it all together with a thin bow.

She grabbed a canvas satchel and threw an extra pair of socks into it along with the gift, underwear, a handful of chocolates from Honeydukes, her bathing suit (just in case), a hairbrush, her toothbrush, her Hogwarts letter, and pulled on her cloak. Jiji told her it was dark blue.

Koeda was napping on the houseplants she'd collected in one corner of her room. She poked him awake. "Do you want to come on a trip with me? Or stay here?" The tiny creature enthusiastically climbed into her hair. She smiled, glad he was always up for an adventure.

Downstairs Jiji dropped a paper sack filled with ham sandwiches into her open satchel. She hugged him around his middle, inhaling the earthy scent of goat and tang of fire whisky that clung to his long beard. Jiji patted her affectionately on the head.

"Now you listen to Hagrid carefully. Do exactly as he says _no matter what_. Even if you get scared. Understand?"

"Yes Jiji, thank you."

"Yer sure yeh didn' want ter be there when she gets her wand?" Hagrid asked hesitantly.

Aberforth waved his hand dismissively. "Bah. She can tell me all about it when she gets back."

She happily followed Hagrid along the winding path out of Hogsmeade, alongside the Forbidden Forest to his hut, where he busily frosted the birthday cake and packed the rest of his things up.

"How are we travelling there?" she asked, as she fended off Fang's slobbery attentions.

"Oh, that's a bit of a treat," Hagrid said proudly. "Dumbledore's lettin' me take a flyin' motorcycle. Much more comfortable than a broom."

"What's a motorcycle?"

"Oh, jus a machine muggles use for ridin' on. This is the only flyin' one around though."

The complete separation of chakra user society from non chakra users was something she still hadn't gotten used to. It was just, _weird_. She had a hard time not just thinking of them as civilians and wizards.

When it was time to leave, Hagrid tucked Sayuri into a little sidecar attached to the main body of the motorcycle, and sat astride the main seat himself. The whole machine sputtered and rumbled violently. Her stomach lurched as it unexpectedly rocketed off the ground.

Sayuri ducked down to get out of the wind, pulling her cloak tight while making sure Koeda was safe in her cloak pocket. A few times she tried casting her chakra around to get a sense of their surroundings, but all it told her was that they were very, very high up and far from anything else, surrounded by increasingly violent winds.

Wistfully, she thought of Miu and wished she could trust her summons enough to have them around again. Miu was soft, warm, and didn't rumble. She hadn't summoned the crows once since that night at the castle when she'd discovered they were also contracted with Itachi.

The journey went on for hours. She hadn't realized she'd drifted off to sleep until a crack of lightning jolted her awake, and a huge hand closed around her leg. A freezing sheet of water gusted into her face.

"Merlin Sayuri! Yeh almost jumped right off!" Hagrid shouted over the raging storm. "Stay right here, it was only a bit of thunder." Hagrid pulled her firmly back onto the rumbling motorcycle, this time on the seat in front of him. Heart pounding and grateful for his reflexes she used a little chakra to stick to her seat, wide awake now.

The motorcycle shuddered and shook under the howling wind. Hagrid folded the front of his coat over her again to keep the rain off. They rode like that for a while longer until his voice finally cut through the storm.

"Here we are. I'm going ter take us down so hold tight."

There was the sudden feeling of her stomach falling away as they dropped out of the sky. Her fingers tightened on the smooth metal in front of her as she desperately pressed chakra to her hands and glued them firmly in place.

Fighting down the panic that rose in her as she sensed the craggy stone and swirling ocean rushing fast toward them, her body braced for an impact that never came.

Instead the motorcycle landed with a bounce, then settled tidily among the craggy rocks. The smell of salt water hit her nose. Were they at the ocean?

"Could they have picked a more forsaken dump to stay in?" Hagrid muttered. "An' in this weather too. Yeh better stay behind me while I straighten out those muggles. Not a pleasant sort. Don' want yeh in the middle of summat messy."

* * *

**Author's Note:**

**Thank you to everyone still bothering to read along and leave reviews. It's very much appreciated. I hope the time skip was handled all right. Originally I had written a bunch of mushy happy scenes of her bonding with Aberforth and his goats, but it REALLY slowed things down. If anyone is interested I could include them as omakes at the ends of chapters along the way, or maybe upload them as a separate little side story. **


	13. A Friend?

Sayuri huddled outside, hugging the canvas bag she'd brought along as the wind whipped her cloak around her and drove sheets of rain into her body.

Inside the building were four strangers. Three of them had the fluttering, undeveloped chakra of civilians. Something that she hadn't encountered in three whole years oddly enough. The fourth she assumed was Harry, a condensed presence wrapped tightly around itself as if to shield him from something.

Hagrid entered the creaking and groaning building ahead of her. Inside, the civilians quivered in dismay and fear. _Anger._ Hagrid's expansive presence just seemed irritated.

After what felt like a very long minute his booming voice called out to her, "All clear then, Sayuri. Come on in."

She entered the drafty building, feet sloshing in her soggy trainers. Hagrid picked the door up off the ground, which seemed like an odd place to keep it, then set it back into the frame behind her.

"W_hat_ the devil is _that_?" sputtered a cracking voice. Sayuri tilted her head toward the civilian man it came from, but didn't acknowledge what he'd said.

Hagrid was settling down onto a piece of furniture that sounded like it was about to die in an explosion of rusted springs. A small fire flared up in front of him, and he began chatting with the boy, Harry, about magic, wizards, and Hogwarts. The civilian man kept interrupting angrily until Hagrid finally bellowed at him.

It seemed that Harry's family did not approve of people like Hagrid and herself.

She stood frozen, awkwardness washing over her as she felt very out of place. _Why did I even ask to come? I don't know how to talk to other kids. I don't know anything about this family. _

"Sayuri, come on an' sit over here by the fire. Yeh need ter get dried off." Hagrid's warm voice broke through her thoughts and she shuffled over to where he and Harry sat, slipping her shoes off next to the fire so they could dry. Hagrid had put a pan in the fire and begun cooking something that smelled meaty and savory.

"Hello, my name's Harry," the boy said.

"I'm Sayuri," she replied, the awkward feeling rushing back. "Um, Hagrid said it was your birthday so I brought this for you," she pulled the little paper bundle from the canvas bag and thrust it at him. "Happy Birthday."

His presence immediately unwound with surprise and delight, which grew even more radiant as he unwrapped the gift.

"Oh wow! Binoculars!"

Hagrid chuckled at him. "Those are better than any ol' _bi_noculars. They're _omni_oculars_. _Magic. Yeh can slow things down an' do replays of what yeh see through 'em."

"Thank you," Harry breathed.

"Yeh might hold on ter that wrapper too." Hagrid said, "It was tied up with a unicorn hair. Useful stuff that is."

Before anyone could stop him, a torrent of questions came pouring out of the boy. "How do you know Hagrid? Are you related? Are we related? Are you a wizard too? Are unicorns really real? Are there Unicorns at Hogwarts? Where did you get its hair? Do you go to school there? What is it like?" He said it all in a big rush of breath. Sayuri took advantage of him pausing to inhale to answer.

"I'm starting at Hogwarts this fall. I don't really know any other kids, so Hagrid said I could come along and meet you."

The man who had been lurking along the periphery of the room finally got the courage to speak up again. "You're not going to that crackpot school," he snarled. "We're not having any of this dangerous rubbish in_ our_ family. You're going to stay far, _far_ away from these two _freaks _and we're going to squash every last bit of magic out of you."

Harry suddenly stood up. "Don't call them that."

Irritated and still sopping wet from their journey, Sayuri rolled her shoulders. "It's too bad," she said loudly. "I guess nobody warned them what can happen when wizard children don't get the proper training."

"What do you mean?" the man snapped.

"You know, to control their powers. Magic doesn't just _go away_. If you squash it down enough, it just builds up until it explodes," she waggled her fingers as she spoke, reveling in the growing horror rolling off the man in waves.

"Explodes?" he said faintly.

"Yeah. My family tried to stuff _my_ magic out. Then one day it just couldn't be contained any longer and exploded." She stood, turning to face his direction while pulling down the blindfold. "It blew my eyes right out and they were killed in the blast. Now I'm an orphan. It's really lucky that hasn't happened with Harry yet."

_"Yet?"_ Vernon squeaked. There was a strangled scream that sounded like it came from a woman as Harry's guardians caught sight of Sayuri's face. She did her best to open her eyelids as wide as she could for maximum effect.

"Yeah. It's unpredictable. That's why I have to go to Hogwarts and get stabilized so I don't blow anyone else up."

"Right, terrible business that was," Hagrid said with suppressed laughter in his voice. With great effort he managed disguise it by muffling his face in his hands to make it sound sort of like he was crying. "Them poor muggles never knew what hit 'em."

"Hagrid, is that why my eyes sometimes get all hot and itchy when Dudley is picking on me?" Harry piped up innocently.

"Oh dear Harry," Hagrid said, his shoulders heaving with the effort of holding in his laughter. "It sounds like we got ter yeh jus' in time. Thank goodness nuthin' happened ter the muggles."

The muggles in question hadn't bothered to stay to hear the rest of the conversation. They'd scuttled off to a separate room and from the sounds of it were busily barricading themselves inside with whatever debris they could get hold of.

"That was brilliant," Harry whispered. "You should have seen their faces." He stopped abruptly, panic creeping into his voice. "Sorry, I didn't mean-"

Sayuri waved him off, tugging the blindfold back into place. "Don't worry about it.

They spent the rest of the evening filling up on sausages and the ham sandwiches Jiji had sent along, and Harry even shared some cake with her while Hagrid told stories and answered Harry's questions. The most interesting to both of them was a story Sayuri had heard snatches of before. A story about a baby Harry Potter, and a very bad wizard nobody was willing to name. She heard his name for the first time that night as Hagrid stammered it out at Harry's insistence. _Voldemort._ She learned how little Harry's parents had been taken, and how he had come to live with these rude muggles.

There was an odd sort of squeezing feeling in her chest. An old, simmering rage for all the cold greedy men in the world who thought nothing of cutting down a child and their parents simply because they could.

* * *

When Harry woke the next morning he was afraid to open his eyes and find that he'd dreamed everything. It was Hagrid's thunderous snores, so much bigger than anything even Uncle Vernon could have produced, that convinced him to take a peek. He breathed a sigh of relief. The giant was still fast asleep on the remains of the couch.

Wonderingly, Harry pulled out the Hogwarts letter written in emerald green ink and reread it a few times. Then he pulled out the omnioculars Sayuri had given him and ran his fingers over the gleaming brass, polished wood, and soft leather. Tidily wrapped around one of the eyepieces was the shining unicorn hair that flashed with warmth as he turned it in the light

The girl's dark blue cloak and dress were lying in a heap on the floor but she was nowhere to be seen. He glanced around worriedly. Maybe she was in the loo. He didn't remember her changing clothes last night, but she'd probably brought pajamas to sleep in.

An owl started tapping at the window. Harry watched it through the omnioculars for a minute, zooming in and out on its irritated face a few times before it decided to go around and come in through the open front door. Screeching, it dropped a newspaper on Hagrid's face and started snapping at his beard.

Harry's eyes widened as he pointed the omnioculars toward the front door. It was off its hinges again. Sayuri was coming through, dripping water everywhere. She was wearing what looked like a very old fashioned bathing suit with sleeves that came down to her elbows and shorts that came down to her knees. It had broad red stripes, and a little ruffled skirt around the middle. She didn't have the blindfold on either. Instead her eyes were closed. Without the fabric covering half her face she had a distinctly eastern look to her features. Her hair seemed a lot tamer when it was weighed down with water too, but that extra bit of domesticity was offset by the black wriggling snakes in her arms.

Hagrid stretched and yawned, picking the newspaper up off his face. Harry quickly scooted backward as the girl marched over and dropped a writhing pile of what actually turned out to be eels on the floor in front of the couch.

"Well done," Hagrid said, glancing at the girl as he stirred the coals of the fire with his umbrella. "We'll cook those up too."

"I got this one in case you guys don't like eel," she said. A large silvery fish slipped to the floor from under her arm. "But I'm not sure what kind it is."

"Oh, a salmon! Those are quite good."

"Did you, did you just go out and catch them?" Harry asked, a little dumbfounded.

"Yeah. I'm a good swimmer," she said, hands on her hips.

Harry tried to process this as Hagrid bonked one over the head and began slicing it into wriggling sausage-sized pieces, tossing those into the pan alongside some sausages left over from the night before.

Sayuri shook her head, water trickling out from beneath her sunken eyelids in far too great a quantity to be tears. "Ugh, it's so annoying when water gets in them," she grumbled. Hagrid pulled out a long dingy handkerchief and passed it to her so she could dab at her eyelids.

"Ya know, this salmon'll take a couple hours ter cook proper. Why don' we wrap it up ter take home ter yer gramps?" he suggested.

She nodded in agreement. The three of them ate in silence until they were stuffed, which amounted to quite a lot of food. Harry even tried a piece of eel once they stopped wiggling in the pan, and found it wasn't as bad as he thought it would be.

The entire morning, Harry didn't see or hear a single peep from the Dursleys barricaded inside their little bedroom. It was very peaceful, and he wished things could stay this way forever.

"All right then, time ter get yer clothes changed, there's a lot of errands need doin'." Hagrid busily began packing up his things. Sayuri grabbed her clothes and headed off to the small loo to get dressed.

Harry carefully gathered up his new treasures and waited outside, watching the seagulls swoop overhead in extra crisp detail through his birthday gift. After a bit of fiddling with the knobs, he figured out how to make it play back what he'd just seen. He was just on his 5th replay of a seagull pooing off the side of the building when Sayuri and Hagrid came out.

"All right, into the boat you two," Hagrid said.

"Wait, where's the motorcycle?" Sayuri asked. She was back in her blue dress with the blindfold over her eyes again, black hair beginning to pop out at crazy angles as it dried.

"Motorcycle?" Harry's eyebrows knotted in confusion.

Hagrid patted the front of his coat. "It's in me pocket. I had ter shrink it down. We're not allowed ter fly out of here, too many muggles around and I'm not supposed ter be doin' magic after we meet up with yeh Harry. Come on now."

This explanation left him even more confused. They ambled down the craggy rocks to the small waterlogged boat that the Dursleys had taken to the tiny island. It was a tight fit, but they all managed to squeeze in and make it back to the mainland without sinking.

From there it was a maze of buses and the underground to reach London.

Sayuri and Harry sat next to each other on hard plastic seats while Hagrid was took up most of a bench on the tube, sprawling out while knitting something enormous and yellow.

"So," he started awkwardly. "Did, did Hagrid say you live with your grandfather?" He desperately wished he had grandparents he could live with.

"Sort of. We're not really related but he looks after me since my parents are dead."

"That's brilliant," Harry said wistfully. "Not about your parents I mean. But, I'm glad someone's looking after you." She must have heard something in his voice because she reached toward him and somehow managed to put a hand on his arm on the first try.

"Sorry that your relatives are, not nice. I can't imagine."

After they disembarked, Hagrid led them down several side streets and turned toward them with a big smile. "Yer about to enter The Leaky Cauldron. It's a famous place. Have yeh been here before, Sayuri?"

She shook her head. "I've never really left Hogsmeade."

"Well yer both in fer a treat. Follow me."

They entered a dingy, nondescript pub. Inside it was much more expansive and cleaner than Harry would have guessed, with more people too. Hagrid began talking to the barman, a fellow named Tom, when the name Harry Potter was brought up.

Everyone in the pub went silent and stared at him keenly for a moment before they all got up and bustled over, eager to shake his hand and have a word.

It was by far the strangest thing that had happened to him so far that day.

* * *

Sayuri understood intellectually that Harry Potter was famous. But spending the day with what seemed like a perfectly normal little boy, and then standing by while he got mugged by every adult witch or wizard in the building wanting a handshake was something else completely. Even famous people in Konoha didn't have to deal with that sort of attention.

Only one of the adults really stood out to her. A stuttering man that Hagrid introduced as Professor Quirrel, and that was mainly because Hagrid said he was a teacher as Hogwarts.

Harry's presence was full of bewilderment and surprised at everyone's reactions. Hagrid eventually had to step in and shoo his admirers away, bustling both children to the back of the pub.

She wasn't entirely certain what happened next. The back of the place was humming with chakra. Hagrid did something and it just sort of flared, and shifted, then suddenly it felt different.

"Welcome to Diagon Alley," Hagrid said proudly.

"Wow," was all Harry could say.

She could hear lots of voices. Cheerful voices and laughter. Children with their families. It was busier than she'd ever heard Hogsmeade. There were owls screeching, boots clattering over cobblestone, her heart beat faster when she even heard the tiny mews of kittens as they passed one shop.

"Sayuri, this is brilliant," Harry croaked. "I wish, I wish you could-" he broke off with a frustrated sigh.

She grabbed his sleeve. "Tell me what it looks like," she said.

"Right, there's shops everywhere. That one is full of all kinds of owls, white, brown, some are spotty, grey ones too. There's another with cauldrons and things, and the next is a candy shop. We should go there before we leave! This one here has broomsticks! Do people really fly on them?"

She smiled as his voice washed over her, trying to picture the things he was describing, sometimes interrupting to ask him what color something was or about something she could hear. Hagrid also pointed out different landmarks as he led the two of them to the very end of the street, which Harry described as having a really tall crooked building.

The crooked building turned out to be Gringotts bank. While they were inside, Sayuri noticed the goblin bankers felt more similar to Hagrid and the centaurs and things than they did to human chakra users.

This building so far was the most similar to Hogwarts castle she had ever felt. The masonry so imbued with chakra it was almost felt alive, and so dense she couldn't sense anything through it. After more chatting with Hagrid and Harrry, a goblin named Griphook took them through a door and loaded them into a little cart.

She wasn't really sure what she was expecting, but flying through caverns in a rickety little cart wasn't it.

It was awesome. Her hair whipped in the cold air and she felt snatches of heat and strange glimmers of exotic seals as they flew past the different vaults along the track.

Too soon, the cart lurched to a halt. Harry and Griphook got out to tend to his vault, and he returned with a sack that clunked heavily to the bottom of the cart.

"Can we go even faster?" she asked the goblin.

"Vault 713 now." moaned Hagrid. "And slower _please_."

"One speed only," said the goblin.

Now, he might have said there was only one speed, but to Sayuri's delight it _seemed_ as if the cart was reaching greater speeds than before. They reached the second vault far too soon for her liking though. Hagrid oozed out, making alarming heaving and wretching sounds.

The thing that Hagrid retrieved from this vault was not a sack of coins however. She wished she could see what it looked like, because it felt like a living contradiction. Simultaneously breezy and hefty. Scorching and frigid. Expansive and condensed.

"What is that Hagrid?" Harry asked.

"Top secret," Hagrid growled importantly. "Can't tell either of yeh."

_Which means it's a very important tool,_ she thought. _Wonder what it's used for. _

* * *

**Author's Note: Young Harry is an adorable little cinnamon roll and really fun to write. That is all.**


	14. Diagon Alley

**Regular text diaglogue = speaking English**

**_Italics text dialogue_ = speaking Japanese**

* * *

Like Sayuri, Harry thought riding in the cart at Gringotts was a great start to their shopping trip. He hefted the sack of gold, feeling more lighthearted than he ever had in his entire life. He could go buy a sack of candy, or a new pet, or anything really. _Anything. _There was nothing the Dursleys could do to stop him.

"You kids, d'yeh think yeh'd be alright if I jes head over ter The Leaky Cauldron fer a bit until this wears off?"

By this, Harry guessed Hagrid meant the greenish tint to his face and occasional urping sounds he was making.

"Sure," Harry said.

"Good lad. The both of yeh stick together. Here's Madame Malkin's. Yeh can get yer robes fitted here."

"Hope you feel better soon," Sayuri said with a wave at his retreating back.

Madame Malkin's Robes For All Occasions was an old fashioned looking shop, with glittering robes draped on mannequins displayed in the window. They adjusted their poses as he watched. Harry peered inside. There was a pointy faced blond boy standing on a stool being measured by a floating tailor's tape.

"Come in, come in. I suppose you need school robes too, correct? Up on the stool please." A plump woman with her hair pulled into a neat bun waved them in. Harry came further into the shop and climbed up on the stool next to the blond boy, where a second tailor's tape began taking his measurements.

Madam Malkin turned to the girl standing near the doorway. "You too dear? Come up on this stool." She reached out as if to take hold of Sayuri's arm and guide her there, but Sayuri shook her head.

"No, that's all right. I already got my robes in Hogsmeade."

The sharp faced boy looked at Harry then Sayuri, eyes calculating, taking in their messy black hair and sudden appearance together. "Hogsmeade." He sniffed approvingly. "That must mean your parents are _our_ kind then. Are you two brother and sister? What houses do you suppose you'll be in? I hope I'm in Slytherin. Can you imagine being sorted into Hufflepuff? I think I'd leave."

Harry was saved from floundering for a coherent response when Sayuri folded her arms across her chest. "I don't _care_ what house I'm in. As long as I'm at Hogwarts I'll get more powerful."

The boy laughed. "Sounds like you belong in Slytherin too. Where are your parents at?"

"Dead," said Harry.

"Oh, that's too bad," the boy said in an offhand sort of way. "Do you two like quidditch?"

"Quidditch is dumb," Sayuri said.

Grateful for Sayuri's confidence, Harry mumbled something noncommittal, but he didn't need to worry because the boy wasn't even listening. He was blithely going on about how he was going to have his father buy him the best racing broom, and rattling off the different models he'd like to get.

"My mother is out getting the rest of my things," he said lazily. "Oi, look at that giant oaf out there."

Harry looked out the open door to see Hagrid chatting with a small wizard in a green suit in the middle of the street. "That's our friend, Hagrid," Harry said firmly.

"Isn't he some sort of servant at the school?" Draco asked. "I heard that sometimes he gets drunk and sets his bed on fire, and that he's sort of a savage brute that spends all his time out running around with beasts in the Forbidden Forest."

"That's not true," Harry said angrily. "Hagrid is brilliant!"

"Well, one time his bed did get set on fire," Sayuri began hesitantly. Harry glared at her, feeling embarrassed and a little betrayed. "But it was more of a work accident. He was helping Professor Kettleburn look after some sick fire crabs."

"Like I said then," Draco jeered, "servant stuff."

"There's nothing wrong with _servant stuff_," Sayuri said. "Besides, handling beasts is his job. He's the gamekeeper. He's knows a lot and he always has interesting animals, like thestrals and things."

"If that's what you like," the boy said. "_I_ wouldn't really want to meet a thestral. They're rotten luck. Maybe _that's_ why he's so shabby looking." He turned back to Harry. "Do you play quidditch? I'm going to be the next seeker as soon as they allow us to try out for the house teams. You should see how good I am at flying already."

Just then Madame Malkin bustled back in with a bundle of robes folded and wrapped neatly in paper. Harry hopped down from the stool as she beckoned to him, and went to pay her. She nodded and smiled brightly. "Here you are, and thank you!"

"See you at school then," the boy drawled as Harry and Sayuri filed out.

Sayuri waved in his general direction, "Bye."

Ever since Hagrid and Sayuri had showed up, every conversation Harry had with someone led to more and more questions being spawned, rather than reducing their number with actual answers. "What's quidditch?" Harry asked her once they were out in the street. Hagrid had already finished talking to the wizard and moved off somewhere else.

"It's just a dumb game. People fly around on broomsticks and try to bludgeon each other with balls and things."

That actually sounded rather fun to Harry, but Sayuri was stomping away looking cross. He hurried to catch up with her. "So, you don't like it?"

"Do you really think they're going to teach _me_ to fly?" she said.

"Oh," Harry's eyes widened. "_Oh. _Well, you never know. It is a wizard school after all. There's got to be some way for it to work out."

"Maybe." She didn't sound convinced.

"Well, I haven't seen you walk into anything _once_," he said. "So, if you could pull that off while flying I don't see how they could tell you no."

A small smile pulled at the corner of her mouth. "Fine then. Where to next?"

Their trip to the cauldron shop was pretty uneventful, although Sayuri was rather concerned about Harry's cauldron being thick enough. She also had to persuade him not to get a gold one, and instead stick to the pewter on the supply list.

"The shop in Hogsmeade sold me a defective one," she explained. "Luckily I ran into Professor Snape outside. He took me back in and made them give me a proper one. Good thing or it might have melted in the middle of class."

"So he teaches at Hogwarts?" Harry asked. "What's he like?"

"He teaches potions. I guess he's pretty nice. He does have a good reading voice. Anyway, he seems particular about supplies so you'd better just stick to what's on the list."

After they found a satisfactory cauldron Harry paid for it and they made their way over to Flourish and Blotts for his books. There was a lot of families inside the store, pulling textbooks from gleaming displays and lining up to pay. Harry went around collecting the books on his list. Sayuri followed him, seeming tired. Or maybe just a little down.

"Sorry, we'll be out of here soon," he said, his attention getting pulled away by a shelf filled with quidditch books with gilded bindings.

"It's all right," she said. "Just a lot of people in here."

"Do they make textbooks with raised letters for people who can't see?" Harry asked.

Sayuri shrugged. "Nobody mentioned anything about that to me when I got mine," she said. "How do those work?"

"Oh, well," he shifted the textbooks in his arms, "muggles have some books printed with the letters raised up. Only they're a lot of dots instead of regular letters. Kind of like a code. And if someone knows how, they can read it by feeling the page with their fingers."

She rubbed her chin thoughtfully. "That's actually a good idea. The only problem is, I don't know how to read your language."

"My language? But I thought- are you not from Britain?"

She shook her head. Harry stared at her, she must have lived here for most of her life then because she spoke English very well. Glancing around, he flagged down a tall clerk with a handlebar mustache.

"Excuse me sir, could you help us. We have a few questions."

A clerk was wearing a red waistcoat over white long sleeved shirt paused. He peered down at them. "Yes, what can I help you with?"

"Well, do you have any books for, for blind people?"

"_All_ books are for blind people. You just need the _Pellegemanus_ charm_. _That will raise text so the reader can feel it. Just dispel it when you're done, and the book will be able to close like normal without putting any strain on the binding. If you want to keep it like that permanently, there's another charm to expand the binding. And there is again yet another charm that makes the book read itself out loud. That can work well if you have a private place to study, though I understand the librarian at Hogwarts doesn't tolerate extra noise."

"That's brilliant!" Harry said. He looked over at Sayuri whose mouth was open in surprise.

"Do you have any books to teach someone to read?" she asked quietly.

"Certainly. Right over here. And if you like, I can charm them for you and adjust the binding before you go. May I ask what sort of quills you have for school, young lady?"

"Just normal ones I guess."

"We have a selection of Dictaquills in stock. You just say what you'd like to write out loud and the quill records it. Could be very handy for composing your essays while you get familiar with writing on your own."

Sayuri had enough extra money to buy one basic reading primer and one long white Dictaquill, which she tucked into her bag after the clerk adjusted her book and they paid for their things.

"Thank you so much! Harry, this was such a good idea. I wish I'd gotten all my books here so he could have fixed them."

"That's okay, I'm sure we can find someone to do it for the ones you've already got."

"I can ask Jiji if he knows how."

Hagrid found them as they were leaving left Flourish and Blotts. He looked much, much better and was holding ice cream cones.

"Here yeh go, I picked these up. After yeh eat we can finish up. We'll do Ollivander's last."

* * *

Thankfully it didn't take too long for Harry to finish the rest of his shopping. Hagrid led them both to Ollivander's. The outside of the shop felt just about the same as the outside of any other shop. Sayuri had been listening to Harry's gasps of amazement and wonder all day and wished she could see what all the fuss was about.

Harry reached the door first, holding it open so Sayuri could walk through with Hagrid close behind. The entire room was filled with layers and layers of crackling, humming, and sizzling that made her skin crawl. She completely missed the presence of the man in the shop underneath the overwhelming activity of what must have been the wands until his foggy chakra came sliding out and brushed against hers. She snapped her chakra back like a whip, reflexively drawing it inside. It was the only way to make this place bearable. To pull everything within and suppress it, even if it did make her truly blind.

The man, Mr. Ollivander, was suddenly speaking to Harry about wands and cores, and wands choosing wizards.

Sayuri rubbed at her arms, it felt like her hair was standing on end. Even Koeda was uneasy, burrowing deeper inside her collar. Mr. Ollivander was encouraging Harry to give a wand a wave.

Something shattered.

Sayuri cringed, then tugged at Hagrid's coat. "I'm going to wait outside the door," she whispered.

He patted her on the head with an enormous hand, and she took profound comfort in the simple warmth radiating off of it. "It's a bit much isn' it? Just stay right outside. Don' wander off, and don' go off with anyone."

"Thanks Hagrid!" She slipped toward the door, swinging her arm out as she groped for the handle. She couldn't feel it, couldn't feel how far ahead the door was, until her fingers physically caught on the cool metal doorknob.

_I need to practice moving around like this. Right now I'm pathetic. _

Outside the door, she leaned against the building and sighed. She allowed herself to feel out the street, so she could watch people going by in her own way. It was mostly wizards and witches, and a couple of goblins.

_I should pay more attention to people's signatures,_ she scolded herself. _I should be able to recognize people I met earlier, but I don't._

Harry was taking a very long time getting his wand. She set her bag on the ground and stretched her shoulders out, wishing she could maybe climb around on the buildings or something. She'd spent an awful lot of time in the past 24 hours sitting still. Maybe, the quill she'd bought, Dictaquill was it? Maybe it could write in her language too. Maybe she could figure out a way to draft a note to Sasuke with it.

"Look mother that's the blind girl I told you about, that I met at Madame Malkin's."

She lifted her head at his voice, recognizing the lazy drawl of the boy who'd insulted Hagrid.

"Oh. Why don't you introduce me, Draco?"

Sayuri pretended to not be aware of their approach until they stopped nearby.

"Excuse me, my name is Draco Malfoy. We met earlier at Madame Malkin's. My mother asked to meet you. Is your brother inside getting his wand?" Draco spoke in an exaggeratedly loud voice, as if not having eyes somehow affected her hearing too.

Sayuri bowed formally. She had no idea if it was something people regularly did here but nobody had ever corrected her and she preferred it vastly to shaking hands. "My name is Sayuri. I am very pleased to meet you both. I have no siblings. We are both orphans so Mr. Hagrid was kind enough to escort us here to finish our school shopping."

"Oh, you poor dear," this time it was the woman who spoke. "Were you able to get everything you needed?"

"Yes ma'am. I did most of my shopping in Hogsmeade already, we're just getting our wands now. I decided to wait outside because-" At that moment, a muffled explosion sounded inside the shop. Sayuri winced.

"That makes sense," Draco's mom said sympathetically. "I was just about to take Draco for some ice cream. Would you like to come?"

"Thank you for your kind offer," she said, "but they might finish at any moment, and I promised not to wander."

"What a good girl. Perhaps another time," the woman said. "Do you live near Hogsmeade?"

"Yes ma'am, I live in the village."

"Sometimes Draco and I are in town. Perhaps we could do lunch one day."

"That would be very nice. Thank you ma'am."

"I think it would be sweet, if you and Draco were housemates," she said, in a pleasant, caressing voice. It was soothing in a way that touched the gaping hole left by her mother's death.

The Malfoys said their farewells. Sayuri could hear Draco moaning to his mother that she was embarrassing him as they walked away. She wasn't sure what to make of them. Draco talked like a little shit, but his chakra was soft and clownish. His mom was, really lovely actually. And it wasn't just the nice things she'd said to Sayuri. She had a softness like feathers, or snow, but she wasn't cold really. It was utterly unlike her own mother, yet reminded her of mom anyway.

After they left she began to regret not going with them for ice cream. Harry was taking _forever._ Finally Hagrid poked his shaggy head out the door and called her in. She slipped inside beneath his great arm as he held the door open for her.

"Welcome, Miss Uchiha. I must say I am eager to begin."

She shifted uncomfortably at his use of the Uchiha name. "It's just Sayuri."

The creepy old man's foggy presence wrapped around her and she shivered. Unexpectedly, Harry's warm hand tugged at her sleeve. "It's not so bad. Don't be afraid."

Straightening up, she nodded.

"I suspect you will be a very tricky one indeed. Try this. 12 inches, supple, rowan with unicorn hair core."

The wand sat in her hand like a piece of lead. He pulled it away and held out another. "10 and a half inches, slightly whippy, vine and dragon heart string."

This one snapped at her fingers with angry sparks as she reached for it.

He kept piling wand after wand on her and her poor fingers were paying the price as wand after wand either singed or snapped at her hand, to the point that she was reluctant to touch them. A shinobi needed to protect their hands. How else would she make hand seals if she was injured?

Mr. Ollivander presented another open box, nudging it at her.

"No. No more unicorns," she said. "They don't like me at all."

"To be sure I'd like you to try this one. It came from a particularly gentle and encouraging mare and-"

"No." She said flatly. "Look, I can feel it. It's going to blow up in my face if I try and touch it." The wand was rebelliously vibrating on its cushion, daring her to invade its cushy little box with her grubby fingers. "Why do I even have to get a wand? People have been doing magic without them for ages. _My_ parents never needed wands."

"It's a requirement Sayuri," Hagrid said almost apologetically. "They way they teach spells at Hogwarts, yeh really need a wand ter follow along in class. Wandless magic is a lot harder than yeh realize. They don' cover that until yer 5th year."

Growling in frustration, she turned back to Mr. Ollivander. "If there are no wands here that want to choose me we'll just have to look somewhere else then."

"Oh, I suspect you'll have little luck elsewhere," the old man said. "Every witch or wizard requires a wand that resonates with their particular essence," he said. Then in a lowered voice added in her own native language, _"Or chakra, as you likely once knew it."_

Sayuri bristled. _"How would you know about that?" _she spat.

"_My father travelled extensively to expand his knowledge of wandlore and in search of the highest quality materials. During his travels he brought back some unique samples of wandwood. Encouraged by his findings, I myself tried to replicate his journey. I'm afraid that some of these woods neither of us ever found a suitable core to pair with."_

He went to a back room, and reappeared not with wands but with two silk wrapped bundles he placed before her. Inside those, were two pieces of carefully seasoned wood. The first was smooth, waxy, and had a fresh pungent odor as he unwrapped it. It shivered under her touch. She pulled her fingers back quickly before it could muster up a stronger reaction.

"_This first piece is from an exceptional camphor tree my father encountered in a place called Takigakure. The residents there nearly killed him over it. If he wasn't such a dab hand at apparition they would have surely succeeded." _

Taki, that would have been the hidden waterfall village. She could just imagine a bunch of enraged shinobi, furious that their special tree had been defiled by a dumb old wizard.

The second piece hummed warmly under her fingers.

"_Ah, that piece seems promising. I recovered it myself, from a remarkable stand of trees in a place you would know as Fire Country. Aromatic pine, I believe. The locals told me they were grown by a man who could produce trees of profound power in an instant using wandless magic."_

That sounded an awful lot like Lord First.

"_What kind of core would you use?"_ she asked, starting to dread his answer.

_"I have my own preferences in material. The real question is, what will these woods _allow_ themselves to be paired with? I suspect that you have access to a core they would find acceptable."_

She folded her arms and straightened up._ "I don't."_

_"Oh, but you've made a contract,"_ he said. _"A blood contract."_

_How the heck does he know about that? _she wondered, taking a step backward. She was so focused on the creepy old man before her, that she stepped backward right into Hagrid's leg.

"I, I don't _want_ to summon them. It's not safe!"

"Summon who? What're yeh going on about? What's this all about Ollivander?" Hagrid's voice was bewildered, and alarmed. He tried to put a hand on her shoulder but ended up missing as she darted around to hide behind him. Hagrid made an excellent shield.

"Miss Uchiha here is just about to provide her wand with a core. Isn't that right?"

"I don't think they will help me." She tugged at the ends of her hair. The crows were probably mad at her. They'd probably be really annoyed at being summoned for something like this.

"This is the only way," he said. "A contract made with blood like yours is a powerful binding. I do not think they will have a choice."

"A _what?_" Hagrid bellowed. "Now see here Ollivander. Yeh don' be scarin' her like that!"

She clenched her fists, pondering Ollivander's words. Summoning contracts were powerful, but she wasn't the only one who'd made one with the crows. Itachi hadn't found her yet though. Right now she was miles and miles away from Jiji's inn, so it's not like the crows would learn where she was living. If anything, summoning them here might throw them off.

They also hadn't bothered to reverse summon her in the past three years, which they could have done if they_ really_ wanted information from her, or if Itachi wanted them to bring her to him.

Fixing her stance, she focused inward. Bit her thumb until she tasted blood, flicked through the hand seals and pressed her right hand to the floor.

"_Kuchiyose no jutsu."_

She heard the tell-tale poof of a summon appearing. A pang of sadness hit her when she felt Tsuchibue's familiar breezy presence. Behind her, Hagrid radiated shock.

"_Good afternoon, Tsuchibue-kun_."

"_Sayuri-chan_," he said coldly, surveying the dusty shop with distaste. _"I thought you weren't going to summon us any more,"_ he sniffed.

_"I wasn't,"_ she grumbled. _"But this geezer here needs something from you."_

Mr. Ollivander was practically vibrating with excitement. _"My dear bird, might I ask if you would be gracious enough to spare two feathers? I am endeavoring to create a tool for your summoner, and believe that a donation from her summons would be the ideal component."_

_"He's pretty polite for a geezer,"_ Tsuchibue said approvingly. _"I'd say yes, but I don't think my feathers would be a good match. There's someone else you could try asking though."_ With that, he vanished in a puff of smoke.

"Ugh, how am I supposed to know who to ask?" she growled. "That dumb bird! This is useless-"

A second crack split the air, and to Harry and Hagrid's shock, Sayuri vanished in a puff of smoke.

Hagrid and Harry both blinked at the spot she'd been standing. Hagrid cleared his throat. "Er, Mr. Ollivander, I don't suppose yeh know where she went? It's just, I promised Aberforth I'd bring her back safe an' sound."

The old man's pale eyes were fixed on the spot she'd disappeared from, looking creepily gleeful. "She'll be back as soon as she's gotten that core for me. Don't worry Hagrid. I'll transport her home myself once she returns."

"See that yeh take her back ter the Hog's Head then. I need ter return Harry ter his family now. I'll come by here before heading back ter Hogwarts, jus' in case she's back. Come on Harry."

Harry trotted after Hagrid as the giant left the shop."What, what happened Hagrid? What did he mean about contracts and blood? What was that bird? It was _talking!_ What were they saying to each other? Can I learn to do magic like that too?" Harry's face fell a little. "I didn't get a chance to say goodbye."

"I don' know the details Harry," Hagrid said grudgingly. "But don' worry yerself. Yeh'll see her at school an' have seven whole years together. I'll make sure she gets home safe." He paused, and punched a huge fist into his open palm. "Oh yeah! Before I take yeh back ter the Dursleys, I wanted ter get yeh a_ real_ birthday present. Follow me." With that, Harry trailed after Hagrid down the street toward Eylops Owl Emporium.

* * *

**Dun dun dun! The birds are back in town. Let me know if things are making sense or not, or if there's anything in particular you'd like to see. **


	15. Revelations

**Note: Like in previous scenes with mixed language speakers _italic text is for dialogue in Japanese _and regular text is for dialogue in English.**

* * *

In the crow's realm,_ Taiyou no Yama_, the heat of the sun and a rush of hot wind scented with pine greeted Sayuri. Hundreds of wing-beats and caws filled the air as the crows circled the enormous nest she stood within. A booming, deep voice rolled out over the mountaintop.

"SAYURI-CHAN, YOU HAVEN'T CALLED ON US IN THREE YEARS. EXPLAIN YOURSELF."

She shivered despite the heat. The enormous presence of Yatagarasu-sama loomed ahead like a mountain himself.

"I did it to protect myself," she said, standing up straight.

"DID WE NOT TEND YOUR WOUNDS? FIND YOU A SAFE PLACE TO SHELTER, WITH OTHER HUMANS WHO COULD MENTOR YOU? HOW COULD WE HAVE OFFENDED YOU?"

"You, Uchiha Itachi is contracted with _you_! He killed my family, and only left me alive by accident. How could I let you crows into my life, when you are contracted with him too! He could use _you_ to get to _me_."

"YOUR SURVIVAL WAS NO ACCIDENT," the giant bird boomed. She fought the urge to wince at his thunderous voice rolling over her.

"What do you mean? My father died. Then the whole clan was massacred except Sasuke. The only reason I survived it is Itachi forgot I existed!"

"HE _NEVER _FORGOT YOU, THE CHILD OF HIS BEST FRIEND. YOU LIVE BECAUSE HE SPARED YOU."

Sayuri's body shook. She clenched her teeth, pulled at her hair. "How can you know that?" she yelled. "For all I know, he killed my father too. He killed his own parents so he's heartless enough to kill _anyone!"_

"SHISUI-KUN WAS NOT KILLED BY ITACHI!" the crow rumbled.

"_But how do you_ know_?"_

The old, giant crow took a moment to collect himself. When he spoke again his voice still rumbled thunderously, but he wasn't shouting any more. "Some of us were present when Shisui was betrayed. One eye was stolen, and he was poisoned in the attack. In the short time before he death, he chose to find Itachi and entrust him with his other eye."

Sayuri swayed in one spot, trying to process what she was hearing. "What are you saying? He was betrayed, by who? That man, those men that killed my mother? Who were they?"

"Miu-chan believes it was Lord Danzo she saw when your mother summoned her to save you."

Sayuri sank to her knees. This wasn't, this was not what she'd expected. Not what she wanted. She wanted to keep hating and blaming Itachi. To keep believing that her mother had been killed by strong, mysterious thugs that she'd need to identify and hunt down, but - "That man had my father's eye in his face."

"And Shisui's other eye is here, safe. Hassaku, come."

_"What?" _Sayuri yelped.

A single crow winged its way out of the flock, swooping and gliding close. His chakra was distinct from Tsuchibue and his siblings, but it wasn't the only chakra he carried.

Tou-san's warm chakra, so full of life, and even though she couldn't see the color she could _feel_ its soothing green concentrated in his eye socket, trickling through the bird's body. Reflexively, she held up an arm for him to land on. Sharp talons carefully wrapped around her slender forearm, his weight much more than her own crows.

"Sayuri-chan, I am glad to finally see you," he said softly. "My name is Hassaku. I was your father's personal summon, much like Tsuchibue has become yours. He and Itachi entrusted me to guard his eye."

"Can't I use it?" she asked desperately. "He was my father. I'm supposed to start school soon with the other chakra users in that country and I can't even read any books. How am I supposed to learn like this? _I can't see._"

"We cannot risk it," Hassaku said. "Your father's eye holds great and terrible power. Great enough for Danzo to kill _him_, a loyal Konoha shinobi, to obtain it. If anyone learned you possessed Shisui's eye, they would destroy you. We cannot let that happen. Besides, Uchihas grow strongest in adversity."

Sayuri's arm shook, aching to hold this bird closer. To hug him against her chest. To hold that precious bit of chakra against her heart and guard it forever.

"Sayuri-chan, you are in no danger from us. Itachi did slaughter the Uchiha, but he did not harm Shisui and he will not harm you. He swore to Shisui that he would protect you. We swore the same to Shisui as well. We are bound to help you by both your father's blood, and your own."

"Why did he kill them then? Didn't he care about the rest of his family?" Tears openly soaked through the blindfold. She sniffed, and wiped her nose on her other sleeve. "Didn't he care about Sasuke at all?"

"That is Itachi's business. I will not speak of it."

Sayuri's head drooped, she struggled to control her breathing. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry all of you. I was so afraid. You deserve a better summoner than me."

"Then be a better summoner," Hassaku said gently.

"O-okay."

"There," he said brightly. "That's settled. Now, Tsuchibue said you need some feathers for a tool."

"I guess I do." She pulled her knees up under her chin, but didn't let the arm supporting Hassaku droop even though her muscles were starting to ache.

"We all thought mine would be the best fit," he said. There was a rustling sound, then his slick beak tucked two feathers into her empty hand. Her fingers wrapped tight around the hollow quills. "Don't be sad Sayuri-chan. We'll be your eyes if you let us."

"Thank you."

Tsuchibue chose that moment to come land on her shoulder. "Hey, no hard feelings okay? If you want, I can come back with your for a little bit. You can make it up to me with some snacks."

"I'd like that. Thank you, Tsuchi-kun."

She pushed herself to her feet, and bowed toward Yatagarasu's presence. "Thank you for explaining things to me. I am sorry I neglected you for so long."

"Until next time, Sayuri-chan," he rumbled.

Just then, there was a wiggling inside the collar of her robe. Horrified, she reached out to catch Koeda as the little bowtruckle threw himself off her shoulder. There was a squeezing feeling all around her, and a puff of smoke.

There was no Koeda in her hand. She was back in the wand shop. Terrified, she cast her chakra around completely ignoring the old man and patrons. Tsuchibue was still on her shoulder, but Koeda was gone.

He was _gone._

_"Tsuchi-kun I left him behind!"_ she cried. "_W-what if somebody eats him?_"

_"Sayuri-chan, we don't eat green leaves. He will be fine. He probably likes our pines. They're sort of like his old tree, but much much better."_

_"B-but who will eat the bedbugs now?" _

He replied by laughing raucously.

_"Don't laugh at me you asshole. Unless _you_ want to be summoned for bedbug eating duties." _

_"__I'll just bring him back to you some time. You might want to quiet down though. Everyone is staring." _

Self conscious dread hit her like a pile of boulders. She recognized everyone in the room this time. Hagrid wouldn't have been so bad. He was used to her strangeness. This was Mr. Ollivander, the boy Draco, and Mrs. Malfoy.

"Is, everything all right dear?" the woman asked hesitantly.

"Oh! So sorry for intruding!" she blurted, bowing slightly as she did so. "Please forgive me!"

Mr. Ollivander chuckled. "There's nothing to forgive my dear. Quite the contrary I am very excited to see what you have brought me."

She tightened her hand on the feathers, not really wanting to give them up now. They felt like, like Tou-san. She just wanted to keep holding that green softness. That warmth. Put them under her pillow at night and pretend Tou-san was right there with her. Just like he used to be.

But she didn't keep them. Mr. Ollivander needed them to make her a tool, so that she could go to Hogwarts and get stronger. Reluctantly, she held them out to him. Tried to ignore the feeling of emptiness left behind when she opened her hand for him to take them.

"These are splendid! And what sort of crow did these come from?"

"I'm not sure," she said. _"Tsuchi-kun, do you know what kind of crow Hassaku is?" _

_"We're both Illusion Crows," _he said proudly.

_"Well, I am very eager to see what sort of wands these cores produce," _Ollivander said in her language. She assumed it was to include her crow in the conversation. The next came out in English. "If you take a seat over here Miss Uchiha, I will finish with young Mr. Malfoy and then see you home. When your wand is finished I'll send word."

"Actually Mr. Ollivander," Mrs. Malfoy said softly. "It is my understanding Miss Sayuri needs to return to Hogsmeade. My husband is scheduled to do an inspection at Hogwarts this evening. It wouldn't be any trouble at all for me to bring her home."

"Are you comfortable with that, my dear?" he asked, patting her arm softly.

Jiji had told her not to wander off with anyone, and to stay with Hagrid. But, it looked like Hagrid and Harry had already left without her. And she much preferred the company of this gentle soft spoken woman to the creepy old man. "Yes sir. Thank you ma'am."

"Was your crow actually speaking?" Draco turned to her and asked excitedly. "Mother, may I get a speaking crow too? Perhaps the Magical Menagerie has some."

"He speaks," Sayuri said. "But sometimes I wish he didn't. He doesn't know much English and he can be horribly rude. I've never found one like him for sale though."

"Where _did_ you find him?" Mrs. Malfoy asked. "He's very unique." The question was innocent on the surface, but she could feel a hunger for more information underneath.

"Oh, I'm not really sure where he came from," she lied. "I inherited him from my father."

The awkward silence that followed was enough for Mr. Ollivander to pull their attention back to selecting a wand for Draco. The shop was still a very uncomfortable place to be, but fortunately Draco's wand selection did not take nearly as long as Harry's and was not nearly as destructive. During the ten minutes she had to wait, Tsuchibue contentedly finished off the last ham sandwich in her bag. When it was all over, Draco happily went out the door with a handsome hawthorn and unicorn wand in his hand. Picking up her bag, she hurried out after him.

The more time she spent around the boy, the more she could tell that there was a softness beneath the rude things he sometimes said. She wasn't even sure if he meant to do it on purpose. So far it was a sort of unthinking rudeness, like the things he'd said about Hagrid earlier.

"Do you want some sweets? My mother bought loads and I've already got so much at home already."

"Oh! Yes, thank you!"

"What kinds do you like? I've got chocolate frogs, chocoballs, chocolate cauldrons-"

"Just a little chocolate anything is fine."

"Here, take the whole bag."

Sayuri's mouth dropped open. "What! That's way too much. I can't accept it."

"Really, here." He shoved it into her hands. "We have _loads_ of money and my parents buy them for me _all_ the time."

"Oh Draco, how very sweet of you," his mother cooed. "Here, once we get to The Leaky Cauldron we'll be taking the floo into the Three Broomsticks."

"Can you show me how?" Sayuri asked. "I've haven't used a floo before. There was never a reason to leave Hogsmeade until now."

"It's so easy a _baby_ could do it," Draco said lazily. "_I'll_ take you through. Anyway, what's your bird's name?" he asked.

"Tsuchibue,"

The crow peered at her in confusion. _"What is it?_

_"Oh, Draco just asked your name."_

"What's he saying now?" Draco asked excitedly.

"He just thought I was talking to him since I said his name," she said.

"Can I give him some candy?"

She shrugged. "Sure."

Draco spent the next several minutes hand feeding Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans to the bird as they walked. Tsuchibue did not eat all of them though. Some of them he spit out and complained loudly about.

"What's he saying about that one?" Draco asked as the bird had another loud cussing fit.

"He said it tasted like an ashtray," she translated, carefully omitting some of his more descriptive words.

"Why _do_ you wear a blindfold?" he asked, holding another gleaming jellybean up to the crow's increasingly suspicious scrutiny. "You're blind right? So why advertise it? Why not just leave it off your face?"

How did you tell an almost complete stranger that you didn't like anything to touching your face and reminding you of the man that had murdered your mother and torn your eyes from their sockets? Fortunately, Mrs. Malfoy chose that moment to intervene.

"Draco, it's impolite to comment on people's appearance," Mrs. Malfoy whispered. Sayuri knew she wasn't meant to hear. But she could hear them.

"Do you have any pets?" Sayuri asked to change the subject.

"My father bought me an eagle owl for school," Draco said. "They're really the best sort you can get. Besides, mother wanted to be able to send me large packages while I'm at school. We also have seven peacocks at home. Not the gaudy colored ones either, they're white. You _do_ know what white is, don't you?"

Sayuri nodded. "I wasn't born blind."

Thinking of white pets reminded her of Fukumaru, which on top of losing Koeda was starting to make her feel pretty miserable.

Tsuchibue, with his knack for horrible timing chose that moment to say, _"Hey, Sayuri-chan. I'm at my limit. Don't wait so long to summon me next time, ne?" _There was a poof of smoke on her shoulder, then the conspicuous absence of his weight and presence.

"Where did he go off to?" Draco asked. "I didn't know birds could disapparate."

She shrugged and shook her head. "He just does whatever he feels like."

Mrs. Malfoy was watching her keenly now. "Is that how you appeared in Mr. Ollivander's shop?" she asked softly.

"What do you mean?"

"Well, you're far too young to apparate. I thought at first he must have gotten permission for a portkey, but seeing your bird just now made me wonder if it had apparated with you from wherever you were."

She pondered Mrs. Malfoy's question for a moment, and decided pretending to be ignorant was the best course of action. "I'm not really sure how any of it works," she said with a shrug. "Maybe I can ask a teacher after school starts."

"I bet Professor Snape would know," Draco said. "He's brilliant, much better than Dumbledore. I think he'd make a far better headmaster. Did you know he's my godfather? He's _also_ head of Slytherin house, which the _best_ witches and wizards are sorted into. That's where my family has been put for ages."

"Oh, I've met him," Sayuri said. "He's very nice."

"You've met him?" Mrs. Malfoy asked curiously.

"Yes, the teachers come down to Hogsmeade sometimes. Professor Snape helped me get my cauldron and things." She decided not to mention that he was also responsible for her speaking English as well as she did. Information was power, in any world.

When they reached The Leaky Cauldron, Mrs. Malfoy talked her through using the floo and sent her into the strange, tickling fire holding tight to Draco's slender arm. He announced their destination, then in a whirl of ash and smoke that she instinctively closed her throat against, they lurched and went flinging through. Flashes of different chakras streaked by, until they were abruptly dumped out. She stumbled, but managed to stay on her feet.

Madam Rosmerta's familiar presence was there, along with several other Hogsmeade residents she knew by feel.

"Thanks Draco! That was fun." _Loads better than hours in a motorcycle sidecar during a thunderstorm anyway, _she thought. She'd have to study up on these different time/space jutsus at school. People here seemed to be more advanced with them than in Konoha. At least for casual use.

"It was nothing," he said in an offhand way, dusting ash from his cloak sleeves. Mrs. Malfoy landed lightly behind them and the flaring chakra in the fireplace faded back to normal. Twisting his body, he called, "Mum, may Sayuri and I get some butterbeer?"

"Oh of course sweetheart," she cooed. "Such a little gentleman."

"Actually, I should get home. My guardian is probably worried," she said. Mrs. Malfoy was getting too curious. There were too many things about her that stood out. She hadn't wanted to stand out. _Shinobi _didn't stand out.

"Whatever you think is best. Where are you staying?"

"The Hog's Head."

Mrs. Malfoy was very quiet for a moment.

"Isn't that where the rabble stay?" Draco asked loudly.

Ignoring him, Mrs. Malfoy put a gentle hand on her shoulder and guided her toward the door. "Draco, why don't you carry her bag."

He sighed in a very put upon way. "Fine, _mother._"

"Is your guardian staying at the Hog's Head for very long?" Mrs. Malfoy asked in a strained, worried sort of voice.

"Well yes, he owns it."

"Oh! He does." For some reason she sounded relieved. "That's all right then."

Sayuri wasn't entirely sure what the fuss was about. People tended to react to The Hog's Head that way though. She supposed a lot of Jiji's patrons weren't the most law abiding sort. Draco and his mother, true to her word, did walk Sayuri all the way home. She thanked them for all their help and happily ran up the steps.

"Well, took you long enough to get back," grunted a gruff voice.

"Jiji!" She threw her arms around his slightly pudgy waist. He patted her on the head.

"Hagrid sent a note saying you had some trouble at Ollivander's," he said. "Did you end up with a wand after all that?"

"No. He has to make one for me, since all the other dumb wands hated me. Here's your galleons back."

"That's, quite a lot of sweets you have there," he remarked as she opened her bag to dig the money out.

"Oh! Mr. Ollivander told Hagrid he would bring me back, but then a nice lady named Mrs. Malfoy came in with her son to buy a wand. She had to come to Hogsmeade today anyway, and offered to take me here. And then her son gave me all this candy because he said he had too much at home. Have a chocolate cauldron!" She pulled one out and held it out to him.

"Malfoy hmm." Jiji took the candy from her outstretched hand. "Be careful around those Malfoys. They never give anything without expecting something back. That whole family is full of dark wizards."

"Your whole pub is full of dark wizards," Sayuri shot back.

"True," he muttered. "Why don't you get unpacked. There's bread and pottage for dinner if Matey hasn't eaten it all again."

After she'd unpacked and eaten, Sayuri went upstairs for bed. She lay on her back and ate several chocolates, sadly patting at the spot on her hair where the little bowtruckle liked to sleep.

Koeda was gone.

Fukumaru was gone.

At least she might find Koeda again though. And now it was okay to summon the crows again. Which made a lot of things better. She bolted upright at a sudden thought.

She'd never used the owl post in Hogsmeade. When she'd asked how much it cost, they told her it depended on distance. And she didn't know the distance to Konoha. Either way, the price they quoted for intercontinental deliveries was more than she could afford. And that was assuming an owl could even find him.

But the crows,_ they_ could do it. And after three years, she was desperate enough to risk him assuming they were Itachi's. Though since they were nin animals, they should be able to deliver a letter without him seeing them.

Pulling her drawer open, she rummaged through for a bit of parchment. Since her parents had been murdered by someone in village leadership, she needed to make it vague. _Very vague._ Just in case the message was intercepted.

It also needed to be something Sasuke would recognize as from her. She bit her lip with sudden anxiety. What if Lord Danzo attacked Sasuke for _his_ eyes too? How could she warn him, without tipping off the attackers?

Carefully dipping a quill in some ink, she carefully wrote:

_Dear Sasuke,_

_How have you been? I'll always think of you._

She frowned at the paper, pondering how to sign it. Should she sign it? Warning him might have to come later. For now, she'd just send a note. She desperately wanted to ask if he knew what happened to Fukumaru, but decided against it this time. It was too much of a giveaway. If only there was a way she could include a secret message.

Something her old academy sensei had talked about came to mind. About using flowers.

FLOWERS!

If she could get a little orange lily, she could include that instead of a signature! It would be like using a cherry blossom to sign if her name had been Sakura instead. It was _perfect._

Tomorrow, she would summon Tsuchibue and ask him to find one. And have him check over her note, to make sure it was actually legible. With any luck, anyone reading his mail would just think it was a love note from a random admirer.

* * *

Miles away from where Sayuri was working on her note, Narcissa Malfoy had just finished tucking Draco into bed. He'd made a few verbal faux pas today, but nothing unsalvageable. She just needed to keep working with him, and remind her husband to be mindful of how he spoke around the boy. Draco didn't quite understand the difference between thoughts best voiced among close friends, and those suitable for acquaintances.

Gently closing Draco's bedroom door, she smoothed her grey dress and walked through the halls toward her husband's study. Lamps flared to life as she passed them, gleaming off the highly polished woodwork.

Lucius was seated in a wide wingback chair, upholstered in wine colored velvet. The firelight played off his long silver hair and pale eyes, lending them an uncharacteristic golden shine. Smiling, she daintily sat on one of the curling arms of the chair.

"Lucius darling, how did the inspection go?"

"It would have been better if I'd found a reason the other governors would accept to have that old fool suspended." A scowl marred his face. She reached up and smoothed his forehead with cool fingers.

"He's an old man, he won't live forever you know," she reasoned. "And Severus will be there to look after Draco."

"True," Lucius muttered, looking petulant now. "But not every wizarding child has Draco's advantage, as far as parents who teach them to have proper wizarding _pride_."

"We can only worry about Draco," she soothed, running her fingers through his long silky hair now. "And we know he will succeed wherever he attends school. He has every advantage in the world."

Lucius sighed, and slipped a warm arm possessively around her waist.

"Draco and I met an interesting child in Diagon Alley today. He thinks she may be Slytherin-worthy. She already knows Severus. Are you familiar with the surname 'Uchiha'?"

"No, what nationality is that?"

"Japanese I believe."

"I can find out if it is a family of note."

"Please do," she purred. "I've instructed Draco to bring her into his circle."

* * *

**Author's Note: Regarding magical prosthetics, they're going to be really difficult for Sayuri to find if she chooses to go that route. From what we see in the Harry Potter books, Moody's eye appears to be a one of a kind artifact that was either made specifically for him, or is some rare antique he got his hands on somehow. If it was custom made, I don't think it's something she could ever afford to buy with her resources.**

**Also, I don't want things to be that easy for her. She's going to have to work her tail off and be creative to keep up and accomplish her goals. **


	16. The Sorting

Sayuri paced in her bedroom, side stepping the one squeaky floorboard as she went back and forth. Ever since that day in Diagon Alley, she couldn't stop thinking about what Yatagarasu-sama had said about her father. About Danzo-sama.

About Sasuke too. It had been a week since Tsuchibue had left with the message for Sasuke. She hadn't heard anything back yet.

Her first instinct was to warn Sasuke about Danzo in case he was in danger. But, three years ago Tsuchibue admitted that Itachi was having the crows keep Sasuke under observation. That Itachi wouldn't allow someone to cripple his younger brother before they had a chance to fight.

If that was true, did that mean Sasuke was being protected from Danzo already? Itachi must know what Danzo did to her father at least, so maybe Itachi already knew that Danzo was a potential threat. And if Danzo was also monitoring Sasuke, any letters telling Sasuke about the danger could make the situation much worse.

"I have to help Sasuke," she muttered, running her fingers through her hair. "Somehow." But first she needed more intel.

She flopped onto her mattress and picked up the reading primer. Then tucked it under her arm and headed back down the stairs. There were no patrons and Jiji was snoring softly at the bar. Scuffing her shoes along the rough stone floor to make noise she slapped the primer down onto the counter. Jiji jerked awake with a snort.

"Jiji, when we were at the bookstore a clerk said that there's a spell to make the letters in books do _this." _She flipped the book open and pulled his gnarled hand across the page. "It was _Pellar-_something_._ I can't remember. Do you know it?"

"I don't," he admitted with a yawn. "But I'll find out. You want your textbooks done?"

"Yeah," she traced a row of Fs with her fingertip. "I'm kind of worried because I don't even know how to read yet."

"Psh, don't worry about that. _I_ don't know how to read and graduated just fine."

"You don't?" Sayuri was simultaneously appalled and impressed.

"You can learn plenty without books and essays and rubbish. As long as you pass the practical exams you'll graduate a fully-fledged witch."

"Will I be able to become a healer though? Professor Snape said something about 'outstanding owls to get into newt potions,' or something like that."

"That's how they score tests, OWLS and NEWTS. I suppose you would need high written scores to get an apprenticeship at St. Mungo's."

"I'll study _really_ hard," she said. "I won't just get an apprenticeship either. I'm going to discover new ways to help people." New antidotes to poisons, new treatments for diseases, whatever it was that might help. Mom had done a lot of good in Konoha with her medical research. But that only helped people living in Konoha. In this country, she could help a _lot_ of people.

Plus the more she knew about the human body, the more efficiently she could take one apart.

A heavy hand ruffled her hair. "That's my girl."

"Has Ollivander sent any word about a wand yet?" she asked.

"No, don't worry yourself over it. That won't make him work any faster."

She frowned, there wasn't much time left. Only three days before the start of term.

* * *

Sayuri waited at the Hogsmeade station platform alongside twenty-one other students. None of them were in her year. They were all older and didn't pay much attention to the small first year standing among them.

"Sayuri there yeh are," Hagrid's voice boomed. "Firs' years'll be meetin' over here. Go ahead an' leave yer trunk on the platform. It'll be taken up ter the school."

Glad for his familiar presence she skipped across the wooden platform and landed on the soft dirt to stand next to him. Heat radiated from the lantern that dangled at his side, and she angled her body so she could warm her fingers near it. In the distance, a thunderous rumbling shook the ground. A long, loud whistle echoed over the trees. The rumbling grew closer until it almost felt like an earthquake. A deafening hiss and puffing filled the air. Crowds of raucous students came pouring out onto the platform. Hagrid began calling out for the first years, waving his lantern aloft.

"Sayuri you're here! Hagrid!" a voice cried. She recognized the clear chakra fighting through the crowd toward Hagrid.

"Hi Harry!" she waved.

"I was worried you missed the train. We couldn't find you."

Before she could say anything, another voice cut in.

"Told you _Potter, _Uchiha lives in Hogsmeade so of course she wouldn't bother getting on the train. Of course you didn't even know who I was talking about."

"She never told me her last name!" Harry said hotly.

"Famous Potter, can't even be bothered to remember his friend's names. Good thing for you there are so many Weasleys. Stick with them and you'll only need to remember one name to call your followers by."

There was angry shouting from Harry and another boy at that. Sayuri shrank behind Hagrid while he bodily separated Harry and Draco.

"That's enough o' that! Merlin, yeh don't need to be fightin' before yeh even get sorted."

The tension dissipated after Hagrid had gathered everyone together and led them down a twisting path to the edge of the lake.

"Four to a boat!" he called.

She froze up near the water's edge, wishing she could just take a little jog across the water to the other side. Harry had already gotten into a boat with three other students. Draco's hand reached out and caught her sleeve.

"Come on Uchiha, ride with Crabbe, Goyle, and me." She let him pull her to a boat and carefully hopped in after him. It sank low into the water as the two hulking boys climbed into it.

"This is Crabbe here, and that's Goyle next to you," Draco said.

"Nice to meet you," she nodded at them. "I'm Sayuri."

Goyle grunted. She felt out their chakra. Goyle's seemed firmly rooted, like a big tree. Crabbe's was heavy and mellow. Sort of sleepy feeling.

"Do you know how they are going to sort us?" she asked.

"My parents wouldn't say," Draco sighed. "Mum said it would ruin the surprise."

"I heard there is going to be a test," Goyle said nervously.

"Don't worry Goyle, we're _sure_ to be sorted into the same house. There's no way they could separate us. We're all pureblood and we all deserve to be in Slytherin."

Sayuri bit her lip. She hoped that whatever was going to happen, she wouldn't need a wand or to read anything for this test because Ollivander still hadn't finished and obviously reading was not going to work.

She leaned over the side and trailed her hand in the frigid water as the boat propelled itself across. Near the far shore, the boats went into some sort of cavern where excited whispers and sloshing water echoed as the boats gently bumped into the shore. Crabbe scrambled out first.

"Here, let me help," Goyle said, bodily picking her up and passing her to Crabbe.

_Am I actually _that_ tiny? _she thought with annoyance.

She felt a little calmer on the shore though. The other first years around them were pretty jumpy. Hagrid led them up a winding stairway cut into the rock. When they came out into the open, her shoes squished in the damp lawn. After they reached the castle doors, Hagrid knocked a huge, booming knock and the door swung open to reveal Professor McGonagall, who Sayuri was very glad had come down.

McGonagall brought them through the expansive entry hall to a small room where they all crowded in together. Gave a little speech about sorting, then recommended they tidy themselves up before she left them waiting.

Sayuri nervously checked to make sure her bangs weren't tucked into her blindfold while the other students speculated about what test they'd have to do for the sorting. Eventually McGonagall returned to take them to the great hall.

This felt nothing like Christmas had three years ago. There were no trees lining the walls. Instead of a single table with a few people at it, the entire room was filled with tables and those tables were surrounded by hundreds of people with hundreds of wands. She gritted her teeth and tried to rub the prickling feeling away from her arms. This was far worse than being in Ollivander's shop. When that didn't work she tried pulling her chakra inward, to dampen the sensation.

McGonagall took them all up to the head of the room and had them line up.

At the table behind them was Dumbledore's hot, expansive presence. She felt around to his right and left, and recognized Professor Snape too. That must be where the teachers sit.

Her attention was then pulled to a voice near Professor McGongagall. It sounded old, dusty, and everyone went silent as it echoed through the great hall. It sang a song about the history of the school, and the houses. She was starting to doubt her comprehension of the language because it _sounded _like the singer said they were a _hat._

"Who sang that?" she hissed once it finished and everyone in the room started clapping.

"The sorting hat did," Crabbe whispered back.

This still told her exactly nothing about what was going on.

Professor McGonagall began reading down a list of student names, and one by one those students emerged from the group of first years and walked forward only to have the dusty voice shout the name of a Hogwarts house. By the fifth name, Sayuri realized they were going in alphabetical order by surname.

_That means, when will I go? A – B – C – D –, _mentally she started going through the alphabet then got stuck at _L – M – N_ when she forgot what came next.

At least, that meant Draco would be sorted before her. Right? M stood for mmm, Malfoy. Then at some point would be Harry and her.

The wait was excruciatingly long. Draco, Crabbe, and Goyle were emphatically sorted into Slytherin, just like they wished for. When it came to Harry's turn, students all over the hall muttered in excitement and she was reminded of the way all the adults at The Leaky Cauldron had fawned over him. After a long deliberation, the hat shouted, "GRYFFINDOR!" and a table to the side erupted into screams and chants. She winced and covered her ears.

It seemed that they were a little over halfway through the list.

Finally, when only she and two other boys remained McGonagall's clear voice called out, "Uchiha, Sayuri"

Wishing she'd spent more time learning to maneuver without her chakra feeling things out, she stumbled over to McGonagall, who guided her onto a stool. A large, worn hat that felt as alive as any person fell down over her ears to cover her small head, and that same dusty voice spoke directly into her mind.

"Oh, you are a bit different than the usual," it said genially. "Not many friends, but extremely loyal. _Very _hard working. Hufflepuff would suit you quite well. You'd gain many allies there."

_That sounds nice,_ she thought.

"And yet, inside you there is a darkness that does not belong."

_What do you mean? _she thought. _Of _course_ it belongs. What kind of person would I be if I forgot what happened to my parents? Abandoned Sasuke? Somebody has to kill those guys before they hurt even more people. _

"Your work ethic stems from ambition. You have a thirst for power. For revenge. And behind you is a lineage that Salazar himself would have coveted."

_If Hufflepuffs love people so much, wouldn't they want revenge if someone slaughtered the people they care about? _she pointed out, starting to get a bit annoyed.

"Not necessarily. Besides, Helga valued love and friendship. You have far too much hatred in your heart."

_Hufflepuff would be better for my goals then,_

she told that hat. _I would probably have more support from my housemates, and nobody would suspect a little blind Hufflepuff girl because Hufflepuffs are supposed to be nice. _

The hat actually had the audacity to _laugh_ at her._ "_And that is precisely why I will put you in -

_"SLYTHERIN!" _the hat shouted.

She was a little surprised at the applause from the Slytherin table. Professor McGonagall lifted the hat off her head, and gently steered her the right direction. An older Slytherin girl hurried over, carefully taking her arm and leading her to an open seat.

"I knew you were one of us," Draco said, leaning across the table. "Congratulations on being in the house of winners."

Weasley, Ron went to Gryffindor. Blaise Zabini, the very last student to be sorted, joined them at the Slytherin table and slipped into the seat next to hers.

Dumbledore then stood and welcomed the students. To Sayuri's annoyance, the Forbidden Forest was declared off limits. So was some corridor, which she couldn't care less about. She did want to go pick up some of Koeda's friends from her old tree to send back to Taiyou no Yama with the crows though, so she'd have to figure out how to do it without anyone noticing.

After they had eaten, the girl that had led Sayuri to the Slytherin table stood up. "First years look this way. My name is Gemma Farley. I am your prefect. Follow me and I will lead you to the common room."

There was a shuffling of robes and clattering silverware as the younger students maneuvered away from the table. Sayuri fell into a group with them. She felt Gemma focusing on her, then the pressure let up as they began to walk.

They took a sharp turn down a steep staircase just outside the great hall. The corridors became cooler, smelled more damp as they descended to the Slytherin common room. Gemma paused in the middle of a corridor and said, "Bloody Baron." Sayuri felt a flare of chakra in the middle of the wall, which Gemma led them straight through.

"Just so everyone knows, that was the password to get into the common room," Gemma said briskly. "If you have any questions or problems, it is my responsibility to handle them and refer those that need additional assistance to our head of house, Professor Snape."

"For the past seven years running, Slytherin has won the house cup. Professor Snape expects _all _of you to help keep up our record. That means no getting caught breaking rules or behaving in ways that would get points taken away."

The words "getting caught" stood out especially to Sayuri.

"Since points are awarded for academic performance, you all need to help each other with schoolwork and things. Especially if one of you needs extra support."

Sayuri felt everyone's attention shift to her.

"If we're going to continue to succeed here as a house, it has to happen together. Does everyone understand?

There was a tired chorus of agreement from all the first years. Gemma led Sayuri and the other girls up to their dorm.

Sayuri wasn't sure at first which bed was hers, but as the other girls quickly claimed theirs she just went for the open one, which apparently had her trunk already set at the foot.

"Hey, what was your name again?" one girl asked. "I'm Daphne Greengrass."

Sayuri did her best to memorize their chakra signatures. The layout of the room. "It's Sayuri. What's our schedule tomorrow?" she asked.

There was a crinkle of paper. "Transfiguration in the morning, then Herbology in the afternoon," read another girl who identified herself as Millicent Bulstrode.

"Um, do you think we'll need our wands tomorrow?" she asked nervously.

"Definitely. How else are you going to cast any spells?" Millicent sniffed.

"Ugh." Sayuri rubbed her forehead.

"Is there a problem with your wand?" Daphne asked.

"I haven't got one," she mumbled.

"WHAT! Why not?" Daphne shouted.

"Mr. Ollivander is making one for me, but he hasn't finished it yet."

"Good luck with _that_ then," Millicent grumbled into her pillow.

"Maybe you could borrow one of ours, if we finish a little early?" Daphne suggested. "I mean, we're supposed to help each other out."

Sayuri thought back to how all Ollivander's wands refused to work with her. "Maybe. I'll try to figure something out."

"All right," Daphne said, worry creeping into her voice. "As long as it doesn't end up costing us points. We don't want to get behind on the first day."

The other girls chatted among each other for a while about fun stuff they did together over the summer after that. Millicent, Pansy, and Daphne knew one another already. Sayuri felt like an unwanted spare. The sorting hat's words flitted through her mind.

_You have far too much hatred in your heart._

The way the hat had said it, felt like it meant there was something _wrong_ with her. Like she wasn't good enough to allow around their precious pure-hearted Hufflepuff children. Like those other children were better than her, that they wouldn't have been corrupted by what she went through.

Like she was tainted.

Clenching her hands into fists, she tried hard to inhale slowly through her nose. She wondered if she would have been sorted into Hufflepuff if Danzo hadn't murdered her parents. The blindfold wicked hot tears away from her skin.

_It's not fair. Why did kaa-san and tou-san have to die?_

The longer she thought about it, the more she didn't like the answer. Tou-san, she couldn't have helped. But kaa-san? All evidence pointed to Danzo murdering her because of Sayuri's stupid eyes. The eyes that kaa-san had forbidden her to show anyone, but she'd gone ahead and done it anyway. And Sayuri had been far too weak to stop him.

She curled up on her side. She wasn't sure what was worse. Knowing kaa-san was dead because she had an ungrateful little shit for a daughter, or that she was such a pitiful weakling she couldn't save her own mother.

* * *

**Author's Note: Just wanted to address something brought up in a comment about Itachi getting her eyes back from Danzo.**

**Itachi is certainly strong enough to do it, but he won't. Itachi really doesn't care about her comfort. He just wants to keep her alive. If he were to go to Konoha to recover her eyes, it would mean jeopardizing Sasuke's safety if Danzo takes it as a breach of their agreement. He slaughtered their entire family just to save Sasuke, so he's not going to risk their deaths being in vain just so Sayuri can see.**

**Itachi also wants her to think of him as a villain. If Sayuri figures out the truth about the massacre, she would probably tell Sasuke and mess up Itachi's plan for him. He can't just put her in a genjutsu, slap some eyeballs into her face and leave. Transplanting eyes takes a skilled medinin or Hashirama cells to make sure all the nerves and muscles are properly connected. Obito and Madara were able to just swap eyes out like changing clothes because of their Hashirama cells. When Kakashi got his eye, he needed Rin to make sure things were properly connected and working. When Sasuke got Itachi's eyes, there was a healing process involved in his transplant too. Itachi isn't a medinin. **

**Also, part of keeping her alive means making sure Tobi/Obito doesn't find out about her. He has an Akatsuki partner who would likely rat out any activities like that to the leader. Shisui was really powerful and famous. If Obito realized he had a kid that survived, and especially if they had sharingan, he'd be doing whatever he could to manipulate and recruit them.**


	17. A Letter At Last

It had taken a very long time for Sayuri to fall asleep that first night at Hogwarts. The next morning, she hurried along to breakfast with her dorm-mates and shoveled a pile of pancakes and eggs down. Jiji's cooking was excellent, but this was a quality breakfast and she intended to make the most of it since she didn't have to compete with Matey the goat for her portion.

None of the first year Slytherins were really sure how to reach the transfiguration room for their first class, but Gemma swooped in to show them the way. It ended up being near the greenhouses.

"Don't ever be late to McGongall's class," Gemma lectured them in the hall as they walked. "She's extremely strict and always alert for opportunities to take points from Slytherin. She and Professor Snape have a fierce rivalry and she'd love more than anything for Gryffindor to win the cup for once. We can't let that happen! You lot have Herbology after lunch, and the greenhouses are just around the corner from here so there's no excuse to be late for that either."

Sayuri swallowed nervously. Would McGonagall use her lack of wand as an excuse to take points away? The little group of first years filed into the classroom. She took a seat behind Crabbe, hoping the larger boy would block her from McGonagall's view.

"Welcome class," the older woman began. "I am Professor McGonagall. You will be studying transfiguration with me. This is the most complex and dangerous type of magic you will be studying at Hogwarts. Any messing about will not be tolerated."

There was a chorus of gasps from the other students that corresponded to a weird warping of chakra that made her shiver, then it warped back. She wasn't sure what had happened, but McGonagall hadn't changed herself to a cat that time.

"Now, quills out everyone I want to see all of you taking notes."

Sayuri elected to do her notes in her native language. It would actually be possible for her to read them later this way, or have a crow read them to her. The lecture portion dragged on for so long that she began to hope that was all they would do today, but those hopes were dashed.

"Pay attention everyone. I am passing out a matchstick to each of you. I want you to practice turning it into a needle."

As McGonagall moved on to her classmates, Sayuri picked up her matchstick and rolled it back and forth across her fingertips with her thumb.

As far as she knew, there were no versions of henge that could be applied to a free standing object. Only genjutsu. And genjutsu wasn't something she had really spent much time developing since losing her vision, for obvious reasons.

Still, this was a very specific task they'd been given. She could guess what the matchstick looked like from holding it. She knew its dimensions, and where it was. And she remembered exactly what a needle looked like. Even though she couldn't see, she could probably apply a very minor illusion to the matchstick in front of her. But if she wanted it to work, she would need to cast it over the entire class.

Ugh.

Part of her wanted to sit quietly and do nothing. It would attract the least attention. But, hadn't she come here to get better at magic and jutsus and stuff? If she couldn't cast a rudimentary genjutsu over nine other kids plus one single teacher, she might as well give up now.

The room was already infused with her chakra. All she needed to do was concentrate on the illusion she wanted everyone to see and disrupt their chakra flows a teeny tiny little bit.

She set the match back on her desk. Dropped her hands beneath the desktop. Flipped through the hand seal sequence. Finished with the rat sign while focusing on the mental image of a silver needle. She muttered under her breath, "_Magen: Kokoni Arazu no Jutsu_."

Nervous, she folded her hands and waited. She was sure she'd gotten everyone, but they seemed to be concentrating hard on their own matchsticks and hadn't noticed she'd done anything. Did it even work?

"Miss Uchiha, let me see your wand," a sharp voice said. Sayuri's stomach dropped.

"I haven't got one, Professor."

Professor McGonagall reached out and plucked the matchstick from her desk. There was a moment of heavy silence. "I want to speak to you after class," she said.

The rest of the Slytherin first years whispered to each other.

Daphne raised her hand. "Excuse me professor, but Sayuri can borrow my wand for a bit. Oh! You already got your matchstick to change!"

There was a rustle of students turning in their seats to look.

"Thank you for your generous offer Miss Greengrass, but everyone needs to concentrate on their own work today," Professor McGonagall said sternly. "Your classmates are none of your concern right now."

Sayuri tried to focus on inhaling deeply through her nose, and exhaling slowly through her mouth. Maybe Professor McGonagall only wanted to talk about her lack of wand. Maybe the genjutsu hadn't even worked on the teacher, or she hadn't noticed it if it had.

McGonagall would have known right away after picking up the match that it was still only a match though. Even if it did look like a needle. Would she consider it cheating?

After class was dismissed, Sayuri sat very still in her seat as the others filed past her. Millicent leaned close as she went by and hissed, "You'd better not cost us any points, Uchiha!"

The heavy door finally fell closed after the last student exited. McGonagall set the match back onto her desk with a click.

"Where did you learn to cast illusions like that?" she demanded. "And without a wand!"

"I'm sorry Professor," she began. "I-I wasn't trying to cheat, I just didn't know what to do since I don't have a wand and-"_ This explanation would be so much more convincing if I was an innocent, hard working Hufflepuff_, she thought bitterly.

"You're not in trouble," McGonagall said with exasperation. "But I must say I've never met a first year who could cast a convincing illusion on an entire classroom. Or any student who could do it wandless."

"Oh." It had seemed innocent and basic enough. Something kids at the academy would have done as a prank. Like that time one of her old classmates had cast a genjutsu on all the students to make it look like sensei was using a piece of dog poop to write on the chalkboard. It had taken him a few minutes to figure out why everyone was laughing.

"My father showed me how," she said in a quiet voice. "I wasn't sure if I could still do it. I haven't tried it since I lost my vision, because how would I even know if I was doing it right?"

Professor McGonagall's voice softened. "You're not in trouble," she repeated. "But my classroom is not the place to be practicing illusions. Transfiguration is much, much more than an illusion and that's what you're here to learn from me. Now what is this about you not having a wand?"

"Mr. Ollivander didn't have one for me. He said he's making one now, but I don't know when it will be finished."

"Well, it had better be soon because I can't have you falling behind right at the beginning of term. Five points to Slytherin, for creative problem solving. With that kind of control I expect nothing but the best work from you going forward. Now, you'd better hurry down to lunch."

Surprised and pleased that she hadn't gotten in trouble, she smiled and bowed her head lightly. "Thank you, Professor."

At lunch, everyone was relieved when Sayuri told them McGonagall had given her 5 points.

"How _did_ you change your match?" Millicent asked as Sayuri gulped down a slice of berry pie. "Only Draco managed to get his match to turn a little bit silvery, but nobody else was even able to change theirs even a little bit."

"If we hadn't been rushed out I would have finished transfiguring it," Draco huffed. "She left it until the end of class and hardly gave us any time to work it out."

Sayuri shook her head and shrugged. McGonagall's reaction told her this was a skill she should keep hidden for now. She regretted revealing as much as she had to the transfiguration professor. "I'm not really sure, maybe it was accidental magic? I was so anxious she would take points away if I couldn't do it."

Nobody questioned it after that. All the first years were considerably more relaxed as they walked back toward the greenhouses together after lunch.

Aside from Draco whining about having to touch dragon dung, Herbology went very well. Privately, Sayuri thought she would have really liked having the motherly Professor Sprout as head of house. That was, until a fresh wave of bitterness and self revulsion engulfed her. She didn't deserve anyone motherly in her life. Not after what she'd done to her own mother. Professor Sprout was probably glad someone like her had been sorted away from the Hufflepuffs. A pang of anxiety went through her as she wondered if the sorting hat ever told anyone what it saw in the students it sorted.

The rest of the week went fairly smoothly considering her lack of wand. History of Magic was weird because the teacher was a ghost, but aside from that was very boring.

Defense Against the Dark Arts was one she initially had high hopes for, but the teacher was absolutely worthless. He stuttered and cringed, all while a foul sense of rotting clung around his head. She couldn't remember feeling that when she met him at the Leaky Cauldron with Harry. It smelled awful too, and all the students wondered what he had stuffed up in there.

Potions was what she most looked forward to. They had that class with the Gryffindors, so it was the first time she'd actually be spending time around Harry or Professor Snape since the sorting.

Wednesday night, Daphne was even nice enough to read the lesson out loud to her. Millicent complained about the noise at first, but then picked it up and read a section out load to give Daphne's voice a break.

Sayuri and the other Slytherins filed into the classroom and found their seats a little early on Thursday morning. The room was filled with interesting smells. Something heavy and cloying like liver, with a variety of lighter odors she recognized as dried herbs. Like the flowers that grew from the boggy shores of the lake, and the sharp tasting mint that was the only plant that managed survive Jiji's goats long enough to grow around The Hog's Head. The smells stuck in the back of her throat.

It reminded her of kaa-san's work space.

Pansy had edged into the seat next to Draco and was hanging on to every word of his boasting about how good he was at potions. Crabbe and Goyle had taken seats next to one another. Sayuri secretly thought that might not be the best combination. Daphne and Millicent were together of course.

"Sit here," a boy said. It was Blaise. There was a scrape of wooden stool legs on stone. She hadn't really talked to him much yet. He mostly kept to himself. At least when the girls were around.

"Thanks." She slid onto the seat and tucked her bag underneath the stool. Spread her fingers over the worn tabletop in front of her.

A moment later the Gryffindors came bursting in, loudly chatting and settling at the desks on the opposite side of the room.

"Settle down," Professor Snape called softly as he swept into the room. Everyone silenced immediately. He started with roll call, pausing at Harry's name to comment on his celebrity status. Then he continued down the list. Immediately after he called the last name, Blaise, Snape began interrogating Harry.

Ordinarily she would have assumed these were the actions of a very strict teacher trying to make an example of someone. In her limited experience, Professor Snape was a very strict teacher.

It didn't explain the weird things his chakra was doing though.

Harry's was tight again, wound up around itself like a shield the way it had been when she first met him in that ramshackle hut on the rock. Snape's though, was much more animated than she'd ever felt it. It shivered with a melancholy sort of longing and desperation that didn't match the quiet, even tone of his voice as he asked Harry what he would get if he added powdered root of asphodel to an infusion of wormwood.

Harry didn't know.

This triggered an inexplicable wave of mild killing intent which bewildered her, as he peppered Harry with more questions Harry didn't know the answers to. By the end, Snape had reigned himself in and settled back into the placid, tightly controlled state she was used to.

_What the heck was that about?_ she wondered as the class all dug through their bags at once for their parchments and quills. She carefully marked down what she remembered of Snape's speech, and what he'd said to Harry. They took a few notes on the cure for boils he was having them learn today, then Snape went around the classroom and divided them into pairs.

She and Blaise were left to work together. Blaise peered over her shoulder. "Oh, is that Korean? I didn't know you could write it."

"Japanese. I'm really bad at spelling in English," she admitted, because it sounded better than just saying she couldn't write in English at all. "It's easier to just translate."

"Makes sense. So you speak it too?"

She shrugged. "Well enough."

"What parts of the potion do you want to help with?"

"I can crush snake fangs or whatever you want me to do."

"Sounds good, I'll grab the ingredients and you set up here."

She got their tools ready, then busied herself with the mortar and pestle crushing the snake fangs when Blaise returned with them.

"Hey Blaise, in England do different flowers mean different things? Like peace or friendship or whatever?"

"They can mean all kinds of things," he said. "My mum is pretty into that stuff."

"Huh, interesting."

She'd never even heard of wormwood or asphodel or aconite before coming to this country. They weren't plants she would have learned about in kunoichi classes. Maybe Ino, that Yamanaka girl, would have heard of them though.

"Do you have a wand yet? Or will I need to do that part at the end?" Blaise asked.

"You'll have to, sorry about that." She poked a finger into the mortar. The fangs were about the consistency of sand. "Here, do the fangs seem ready?"

"Looks good to me," he said. "Go ahead and add them to the cauldron."

Snape was berating the Gryffindors on the other side of the class. His chakra had gone all wonky again. She and Blaise focused on their cauldron, not wanting to be chewed out like that regardless of how much everyone said he favored Slytherins. They had just finished stirring in the porcupine quills and Blaise was doing the finishing touches with his wand when there was a wounded shriek to their left. She gagged on the noxious smoke quickly filling the classroom.

"Get back!" Blaise yelped. "Sayuri get on the stool! Pull your feet up!"

An acid hiss flowed beneath them. Their stools began to wobble as something ate away at the wooden legs. She hugged her knees and sighed into her robe. Snape was shouting at whoever had caused the accident.

"Take Longbottom to the hospital wing," she heard Snape snarl, then he took points from Harry for not helping the unfortunate kid.

That didn't quite seem fair, but Harry _was_ a Gryffindor. Gemma had said Snape and McGonagall had a strong rivalry. Whatever was going on between Snape and Harry seemed a little more personal than an inter-house rivalry though. If she hadn't already spent a day with Harry and known that he had never met Snape before, she would have thought they already knew each other.

Maybe something had happened between them outside of class since school started?

* * *

A fat white cat with a slightly squashed face waddled across training ground 10 with an envelope clutched in his mouth. It hopped up on Sasuke's lap, dropping the letter in his open hand.

"What's this?" Sasuke asked, his brows drawing together.

"It's probably just more stupid love letters," Naruto said. The blond flopped onto his back in the grass. "All the girls in Konoha have horrible taste." That earned him a glare from Sakura, but she was too far away to make the effort to hit him for the comment. Instead she tried to nonchalantly look over Sasuke's shoulder from behind.

Sasuke fought the urge to cover his face with his free hand. How did he ever get such dumbass teammates? In the three months since they became genin, couldn't she have figured out a more subtle way to spy on his mail?

He was about to stuff it in his pocket unopened when the cat, Fukumaru, swatted his hand and glared at him with large shining eyes.

Sasuke stared back. It _was_ odd, this was the first time Fukumaru had brought any kind of mail directly to him. Usually letters were just left obvious places by girls hoping hewould find them and actually care.

His heart beating a little faster, he carefully tore the envelope and slipped the paper out. There was a pressed flower inside. The message was written untidily in green ink.

_'How have you been? I'll always think of you.'_

Sakura blinked at the small orange flower in his hand. "A sayuri? That's a weird flower to put in a note."

His chest felt as if something had squeezed all the air out of it.

"Who is that from?" Sakura asked. "You should be careful of whoever sent that, Sasuke. That flower doesn't have a very nice meaning."

He stood abruptly, dumping Fukumaru on the ground. The cat glared up at him. "Tell Kakashi-sensei I'm not doing today's mission," he said.

"WHAT!?" Naruto bellowed. "You'd better not ditch us-"

Sasuke didn't hear the rest of what Naruto was saying, because he was already flinging himself through the trees back toward the hokage tower.


	18. Flying

Kakashi trudged up the winding hokage tower stairway. The kids were getting pretty restless with their D rank missions, so he half-hoped it was time for something a little more challenging. Sure a C rank would be more troublesome, but he could only take so much complaining. Even Sasuke was letting his restlessness show.

The hokage was seated in his usual place behind the wide desk when Kakashi entered. The old man sighed into his pipe and rested a loose fist on a stack of papers. "Kakashi, thank you for coming. We have an evolving situation here, but it seems that Akahane Sayuri may still be alive."

Kakashi's brow furrowed. This was not what he expected when he was summoned to the hokage office. "Is there any intel on her current location?"

"That's what I wanted to talk to you about." The old man filled his mouth with pipe smoke and blew it out his nostrils like some grizzled old dragon. Kakashi wrinkled his nose. Even with the mask, tobacco smoke temporarily ruined his sense of smell. "Sasuke received an anonymous letter with a sayuri flower that he is convinced was sent by her. I'd like you to compare any scent on it with scents in the evidence locker from the Akahane murder to see if there's a match."

Kakashi nodded once. That would be easy enough for Pakkun to handle. "Is that all, Hokage-sama?"

"No," he said. "A report filed by an operative in Kumo mentioned someone inquiring about Uchihas."

"Why would that be strange?" he asked. Uchiha Itachi was a wanted S rank criminal in every country with a large bounty on his head. The clan itself was practically legendary. It was only natural they'd be talked about.

"It's strange because the inquiry came from off-continent," the hokage said. "And it mentioned an Uchiha Sayuri by name."

Kakashi's eye widened. "What?"

The wide brimmed hokage hat shaded his eyes as he clasped his hands in front of his chin. "Some time ago, Sasuke informed me that her father was Uchiha Shisui."

Memories from his time in ANBU flashed through his mind. Shisui had always been steadfast, always smiling and ready to help. Immensely strong and loyal to his comrades and to the village, his death had come as a shock to everyone who had ever worked with him. He'd never known that Shisui had a child.

It made perfect sense now why Sasuke was so insistent that she was alive, that he find her. She wasn't just a missing friend, she was the last good bit left of the smoking ruins of his family.

"How did she leave the continent?" Kakashi asked. He frowned at the hokage. "How much of this does Sasuke know about?"

"Not much yet," the hokage admitted. "I intend to tell him the results of your investigation into that letter, but for now want to keep the other portion quiet. If we can confirm her location, I'd like to send a team to retrieve her." He stroked his beard thoughtfully. "Ideally, Sasuke would be part of that team since he is most likely to succeed in persuading her. But I am hesitant to send the last Uchiha and the nine tails jinchuriki on such a remote mission while they are only genin."

"Understood, Hokage-sama."

"That's why I'd like to send your team on their first C rank, if you think they're ready. We have a client requesting an escort to the Land of Waves."

Kakashi breathed a sigh of relief. That was doable, and it would hopefully cut down on the complaints about 'lame missions'. "I'm sure they'll be glad to get it."

"Excellent. Bring them here tomorrow at 10 am. Make sure they're packed for an out-of-village mission and I'll introduce the client then."

* * *

Sasuke wound his way slowly between tall earth and jewel colored buildings with tile roofs, clutching a round white cat in his arms. His shadow stretched out, reaching all the way across the street in the setting sun as he made his way toward Sakura's house. Fukumaru soaked in the change of scenery with wide yellow eyes. Kids playing some chase game kicked up dust as they ran by, making the cat flatten his ears with annoyance. Eventually they reached a modest townhouse in the civilian business district, wedged between a clothing boutique and another residence.

Sakura's bright face appeared at the door before he even had a chance to knock. The savory smell of beef wafted out, making his mouth water. "Sasuke-kun come in!"

Slipping off his shoes at the door, he sighed and followed her in.

A middle aged blond woman beamed at him from an inner doorway. "Oh what a beautiful cat Sasuke-kun!" Mrs. Haruno hurried over. "Is he shy? We went out and bought a litter box as soon as Sakura told us you needed someone to look after him during your mission."

Sasuke shook his head. "Thank you ma'am. He's very friendly. Here's some money for his food while we're gone. He likes mackerel."

Fukumaru leaped out of Sasuke's arms as he spoke, landing neatly on the floor. He delicately sniffed the air, then planted his tiny wet nose on Mrs. Haruno's leg.

"Oh, what a sweetie!" she cooed. He wasn't entirely sure if she was talking about him or the cat. "Don't worry about the money. We can handle a little mackerel. We're just so excited both of you are going on your first big mission together."

Mr. Haruno, a big man with hair shaped like a violently fuchsia starfish and a with very weird mustache, came into the room and beamed at Sasuke. "Why don't you stay for dinner? Mebuki cooks enough for an army."

Sasuke bowed politely. "I have a lot of packing to get done before tomorrow, but thank you for your offer." Truthfully, he was already packed and it had only taken him twenty minutes. But, their attention was doing strange things to his insides. A familiar squeezing sensation invaded his chest, in the same way it always did when he thought of his parents.

Mr. and Mrs. Haruno were as different from his own parents as anyone could get, but that tenderness was familiar. That drive to look after the children around them.

He couldn't stand being reminded of what he'd lost.

"If you can't stay, at least take some when you leave," Mrs. Haruno urged. "Sakura, why don't you pack him a bento."

Her cheeks colored up as she shyly glanced at him, "Yes Kaa-san!"

He tried to politely protest again, but found a box being thrust into his hands.

"I added some tomatoes," Sakura said with a lopsided smile, looking up at him with wide green eyes.

"Thanks," Sasuke muttered, firmly ignoring the faint flutter in his stomach. Feelings were annoying. "See you tomorrow."

He disappeared from the Haruno house as quickly as was polite, slipping a little bit of cash into Mrs. Haruno's pocket on his way out. As he walked, he peered inside the box. There was a generous helping of steaming nikujaga with sliced tomatoes on the side. His stomach twisted as he looked at the food.

At one time his mother used to cook nikujaga for their family. It was father's favorite, but Itachi always had to bribe Sasuke with tomato slices to get him to eat even one bite of it. He closed the box with a snap.

He wasn't hungry at all anymore.

Glancing around, he sprang onto a rooftop. Tiles clacked softly under his sandals. He sprinted across several neighborhoods until he reached a run down looking apartment building. Ducking into a tree, he squinted his eyes and stared through a distant window.

The first had an arguing couple, but the apartment below that one had his stupid teammate. Naruto's yellow hair bobbed as he frantically went from one side of the room to the other, stuffing things into his rucksack, then dumping the whole thing out and starting over again.

Sasuke bounded closer, dropped down just below the window. He slid the bento onto the windowsill, rapped loudly on the glass, then disappeared onto the roof again.

Naruto's surprised cry cut through the air. Sasuke resisted the urge to peek as his teammate yelled with happiness, then shouted a triumphant, "_itadakimasu!_" followed by loud, contented eating sounds.

_Dobe,_ Sasuke thought. How could someone call themselves a ninja yet do everything so loud? Especially eating? He hadn't planned to sit around, but the realization that Fukumaru wouldn't be there to keep him company tonight didn't make him very eager to go home right away. Instead he sat on the roof, a strange contentment settling over him as he listened to his noisy teammate eat dinner and finish packing.

The hokage still hadn't gotten back to him with his findings on the letter. He knew the hokage was right to be cautious. It could be a trick. Something Itachi might do, to lure him into a trap. Or just to hurt him.

But, nobody else knew they'd promised to always think of each other.

He'd stayed vigilant for any new letters, but to his disappointment none had come. He still wasn't sure how Fukumaru had gotten that first one, but he was determined to figure out how she had sent it, then somehow trace it back to her. This was the best lead he had gotten in years.

* * *

It had been almost a week since the sorting. Harry was simultaneously in heaven, while being exhausted and overwhelmed with homework and the wonderment of it all. The monotonous cruelty of the Dursleys had rapidly faded like an unpleasant dream.

Ron had fast become his very best friend. It was the only time in his life Harry had ever had a friend, much less a best friend. Before this school year, Dudley and his gang had made sure nobody willingly spent any time near Harry. He thought wistfully of the girl who had gone shopping with him in Diagon Alley. Who'd terrified the Dursleys so much with a simple non-magical prank they'd locked themselves in the drafty old cabin bedroom all night and henceforth tiptoed carefully around Harry until the day came to drive him to the train station.

She could have become a friend.

Why did she have to be sorted into Slytherin with _Malfoy_ of all people? She was far too nice to be in that house. He was certain someone like her could never grow up to become a dark witch. He'd been looking forward to seeing her in potions and introducing Ron, but that turned out to be the absolute worst class ever.

"You'll love flying, Harry. Just wait, it's brilliant," Ron said, his freckled face bright. "Maybe we'll even be able to try out for the quidditch team in a year or two! Fred and George are beaters. I wonder who the new Seeker will be now that Charlie has graduated."

Thinking back to his new omnioculars, Harry couldn't wait to try them out watching a real quidditch match.

They and the other Gryffindor first years meandered down a long grassy slope past the quidditch pitch toward a flattened area. There were about twenty brooms lying on the ground. The Slytherins were already waiting. Sayuri was standing near a group of girls with her arms folded while Malfoy bragged about how good of a flyer he was.

Harry almost waved to catch her eye then felt foolish when he realized that wouldn't work. Before he could call out to her their teacher, Madam Hooch, arrived. She had a sharp expression and yellow eyes like a hawk. Her hair was short and grey but her face wasn't very old.

"Hurry up everyone. Go stand by a broomstick," she called, her clear voice resonating through the field. Everyone shifted until they were next to one. Harry glanced at Sayuri worriedly, but she didn't seem to be needing much help so far.

"Now stick your right hand out over your broomstick, and say UP!" she barked.

Harry's rickety old broomstick leaped immediately into his hand. Grinning widely, he glanced around. Hermione and Neville's brooms were both writhing in the grass as if they had been wounded. Ron's was making some halfhearted twitches off the grass at least.

Malfoy smirked at him, broom in hand.

Sayuri's broom was lurching off the ground when Madam Hooch suddenly interrupted her. "What is your name and what is that on your face?" she asked sharply. The other Slytherins looked at each other uncomfortably.

"Sayuri Uchiha," she said in an even voice. "And it's a blindfold."

"Well get that nonsense off. You can't expect to fly blindfolded."

The girl blanched and turned her head away, shrinking away from the teacher a little. Draco lifted his chin defiantly. "It won't make a difference if she wears it or not. She's blind either way."

Madam Hooch seemed to swell a little, and turned sharply on the small Slytherin. "Is this true, Miss Uchiha?"

"Yes ma'am."

"Then you are excused from my class. I will not be responsible for you falling to your death."

The girl's arm dropped limply to her side. "What if I can prove I won't crash?"

"Absolutely not."

"Madam Hooch _please_. This is something I _must_ learn."

"Miss Uchiha, my decision is final. Flying can be a deadly pursuit even for someone in full possession of all their senses."

A lump rose in Harry's throat. He remembered how hopeful she'd been in Diagon Alley that flying class might work out. "Madam Hooch," he began. "What's the harm in letting her try? Couldn't she just stay low to the ground?"

"Mr. Potter," she said sharply. "I'll ask you to mind yourself. Now _you_, back to the castle." She loomed over the small Slytherin, hands on her hips. Sayuri's hands were balled into tight fists, head bowed and jagged black hair falling into her face.

"Sorry, but I'm afraid I'll just get lost trying to find my way back alone since I'm so blind and helpless," she sneered bitterly. "If you don't mind I'll just sit out of the way until my housemates are finished with class."

Madam Hooch stared at her with narrowed eyes. "Mr. Potter, since you have already mastered summoning your broomstick, why don't you guide her over to that oak?" She gestured toward a tree on the periphery of the field with a curt sideways nod of her head.

Harry hurried over to where Sayuri stood, glanced at her clenched fists and cleared his throat. "Um, follow me I guess." She silently trailed after him while Madam Hooch snapped at the other students to, "stop gawking and get those brooms up!"

"Sorry about this," he muttered. "I was looking forward to seeing you in class today too. We haven't gotten to talk hardly since school started."

The tension in her shoulders eased a little. "Yeah. Thanks for trying to change her mind."

"I just wish it had worked," he said. "Look, Ron and I were planning to visit Hagrid tomorrow. Did you want to meet up at his house? I'm sure Hagrid would like to see you too."

"That would be great. He said he was working on a new rock cake recipe, I wonder how it's coming along."

There was a sudden terrified cry that drew their attention back toward the class. Neville's broom steadily rose higher and higher, clearly against his wishes, until he was well out of reach. Madam Hooch shouted, "Get back down here boy!" Harry watched in horror as Neville slipped sideways and lost his grip.

Harry sprinted back to the class in time for a close up view of Neville landing face down in the grass, looking like a heap of laundry on the boy's dormitory floor. Madam Hooch's face was pale as she checked him over, and announced he had a broken wrist. Neville, whose eyes were now watery and pink, slowly got to his feet with her help. She announced she'd be taking him to the infirmary, and left with a stern warning that anyone touching their brooms would be thrown out of school.

* * *

The oak tree's rough bark dug into Sayrui's back as she leaned against it. Harry had left her abruptly to check on his fallen housemate. Sayuri considered just leaving while stupid Hooch took the Gryffindor boy to the infirmary, but didn't want to miss the flying lesson even if she wasn't allowed to participate. Maybe she could still pick up on some techniques by feeling out the other student's chakra and listening to the teacher's instruction.

She was only half listening to Draco's jeers when Harry started arguing with him. Against Madam Hooch's strict orders, both boys were airborne. Then Harry went into a steep dive and the Gryffindors cheered.

Sayuri froze, the other students were completely oblivious to the swirling, trembling anger gusting around the approaching transfiguration professor until the woman spoke.

"NEVER have I -," McGonagall swept up to them. All the students fell silent. "Potter! You could have broken your _neck_. What were you thinking? Come with me."

A Gryffindor girl tried to interrupt and explain what Draco had done, but McGonagall cut her off and led a very despondent Harry away. As soon as they were out of earshot, several of the Slytherins started giggling.

"Would you look at that? Potter's already getting expelled after only a week?" Draco hooted.

Frowning, Sayuri slipped away. McGonagall was moving pretty quickly with Harry trailing behind her. Were they really going to throw Harry out? If so, that was hardly fair. If worse came to worse though, she was sure she could convince Jiji to let Harry stay in her room at The Hog's Head during the school year so he wouldn't have to go back to his horrible family right away.

She followed them at a distance as far as the moving stairs before Professor McGonagall abruptly stopped walking. "Miss Uchiha, do you not have a class to be in right now?" she asked icily.

"No. Madam Hooch won't teach me to fly."

"I see. In case it wasn't explained to you before, discipline is handled privately here and I will not tolerate inter house spying. If you have a free period then I suggest you spend it working on your essays. The first round of homework you turned in left much to be desired."

She felt her face twist and her body stiffen. "Sorry for being worried about Harry then," she spat. "I'll see you later at Hagrid's Harry, if you're still feeling up to it."

"All right," Harry's breath hitched. He sounded like he might start crying, which only made Sayuri even more furious.

Before McGonagall could say anything else, she turned and hurried back down the stairs toward the dungeons. When she got to the narrow staircase next to the great hall, she jumped down those steps five or six at a time. How could McGonagall think she was trying to _spy_ on Harry? It was insulting. For one, if she'd been spying, she wouldn't have let herself get caught doing it. And for two, the only reason McGonagall thought she was doing it is because she'd been sorted into Slytherin.

The thought would have never crossed the older woman's mind if Sayuri had been in Hufflepuff. If she had, everyone would have just rightly assumed she was concerned for him.

Growling, she tried casting her chakra ahead to feel out the hall. She still hadn't quite gotten used to the stone and doors in the castle being so opaque to her, so Professor Snape caught her a little off guard when his silvery presence suddenly appeared in the hall from a behind a door.

"Why aren't you in class?" he asked.

"Madam Hooch won't allow it," she said in a flat voice. Then suddenly, she wondered if being a head of house Snape might outrank the flying instructor. "Would you be able to convince her to give me a chance?"

"It is Madam Hooch's prerogative to accept or deny student enrollment in her own classes," he said. "I would be inclined to make the same decision in her place."

"But sir, learning to fly would really help me-"

"With what? Breaking your neck? There are plenty of other magical means of transportation available to you. You ought to devote your extra time to _learning how to read_. "

She hung her head. Flying would give her an edge in winning her eyes back, but not knowing how to read would mess up her chances of mastering almost every other subject. Besides, it was clear that neither Hooch or Snape were going to change their minds on this. "Yes, sir."

"Now what is this I am hearing from Professor McGonagall about you not having a wand?" he asked, his voice sharp. What was it with all the teachers being cranky today?

"Mr. Ollivander hasn't finished it yet. He said he'd send an owl when he's done."

"I find it hard to believe he had nothing to loan until its completion," Snape said. "Step into my office please."

It turned out the door he had just come out of led to his office. She mentally filed that bit of information away for later. There was the scrape of chair legs as he pushed the hard wooden back of a chair into her hands.

"Sit. What is this business about you casting illusions without a wand?"

She slipped into the seat. The office walls were lined with things that glimmered with residual chakra, jostling for her attention. "I-I think it might have been accidental magic."

"This will be the first and only time you _ever_ lie to me," he said in a low, cold voice, killing intent beginning to leak in a controlled way. "Now who taught you?"

"My father," she whispered. He was definitely a teacher she never wanted to make angry.

"Demonstrate."

"It's hard to remember what things are supposed to look like. Professor McGonagall just had us doing matchsticks into needles."

"And yet you did it." His chair creaked as he leaned back. "Surprise me."

She shoved hands in her pockets, idly running fingers over the foil wrapped sweets Draco had passed across the table to her when his owl had shown up with its usual care package at breakfast that morning.

What sort of genjutsu could she possibly demonstrate for Professor Snape?

If she could see nothing, she should be able to make him see nothing as well. Or rather, see darkness anyway. It was easy to focus on darkness. The hard part would be physically disrupting the chakra in his brain. The flow felt, dense. Like it was protecting itself. Especially around his head.

"Sir, I won't be able to cast it on you if you won't let me. I'm not _that_ good."

"Just try," he drawled. She noticed he did relax a bit though.

Drawing her hands from her pockets, she dropped them below the edge of his desk. Flashed through the seals, ending on _tiger._

"_Genjutsu: Kokuangyo no Jutsu_," she murmured.

This wasn't like casting it on her classmates. Even with him deliberately relaxing, finding an entry point was nearly impossible.

He sighed, and she felt his resistance ease significantly allowing her the necessary access to disprupt his chakra flow.

"Am I right in assuming the intended effect is to replace my vision with darkness?"

"Yes, sir." She was about to release it, but it was abruptly dispelled before she had the chance.

"It was effective. Are you able to include any other sensory information? Sounds? Smells?"

"I should with some practice," she said.

There was a heavy knocking at the office door.

"Enter," Snape said.

Someone from her house entered. An older boy, she didn't know him well at all but recognized him from the meal tables and passing through the common room.

"Mr. Flint, what excellent timing. Have you met Miss Uchiha?"

"Can't say I've paid any mind to the first years," the older boy admitted.

"Professor McGonagall informed me of a peculiar skill she exhibited during her first transfiguration class," Snape drawled. "It's my belief that the two of you may be able to come to a mutually beneficial arrangement, with the possibility of increasing Slytherin's chance of retaining the house cup.

"Miss Uchiha, Marcus Flint is the captain of the Slytherin quidditch team and quite accomplished at flying. Now if you'll excuse me I have to prepare my next lesson. For privacy sake, you may remain here to discuss the particulars."

After he gathered his things and left, Flint pulled up a hard chair and plopped into it. "What's he going on about then?" the older boy asked.

Sayuri wasn't quite sure what Snape _wanted_ her to tell Flint, but she explained to him what she'd done in her first transfiguration class, and just then with Snape.

Flint was very quiet for a few moment.

"Cast it on me then. Make me go blind."

"All right." Flint was much, much easier to work with. He was so much more open. She made the hand seals and pricked his chakra, disrupting it the tiniest bit.

The older boy swore. Sayuri released the genjutsu. "I haven't done this in a really long time. Sorry."

"Don't be sorry," Flint said quickly. "That was really good. What else can you do?" he asked.

"Visuals are hard, because I can't remember what things are supposed to look like," she said. "But with some practice I should be able to do sounds and stuff."

"We need to determine your range," he mused. "Come with me to the quidditch pitch tomorrow. _Early._ I want to test something. And don't tell anyone else about this. It's got to remain between you, me, and Professor Snape."

"McGonagall knows I can do this too," she reminded him.

"We'll just have to be extra careful then. Subtle."

"Will you teach me to fly?" she asked suddenly. "Madam Hooch won't let me take her class."

"That depends on whether you're able to help the Slytherin team," he said. "Tomorrow. And when I say early I mean before breakfast."

* * *

**Author's Note: Sorry for the delay in updating. I've been doing some outlining and writing ahead. There will be more of Sasuke and his team coming up in the future, I just didn't think people would want to read scenes rehashing the same old things Team 7 had already gone through in the manga and anime up until this point. **

**Thank you for the very kind reviews. It means a lot to me to hear from people what they think about where this is going, what's being done well, and what could be handled better. **


	19. Friends for Koeda

That evening in the Slytherin common room, Sayuri sank into the cushions of an impossibly comfortable couch. The upholstery was sort of velvety, and the cushions weren't flat or pokey at all.

Draco was positively giddy. "I challenged Potter and his little Weasely follower to a wizard's duel at midnight. You think he'll really be stupid enough to show up?" He flopped onto the couch next to Sayuri and laughed. "I hope he is, because Filch is expecting him."

Instead of making her worried, it actually made her feel a little relieved. If Harry was still around to get into midnight duels, then he hadn't been expelled. He could handle himself.

"If he has half a brain he'll have tipped off Filch too though," Sayuri said.

Draco made a chuffing sound. "As if a Gryffindor would soil their so-called honor like that. Really Sayuri, you have a lot to learn about Hogwarts. Don't worry though, I won't let you go into it blind."

She couldn't help giggling. It was a stupid joke, but it had been a long day. After a moment Crabbe and Goyle caught on that Draco had said something funny and laughed too. People could say what they wanted about the two large boys, but it was fast becoming obvious how loyal they were. Their relief at being sorted into the same house as Draco had been palpable the entire week.

"It's really too bad Madame Hooch singled you out like that. I bet you could fly circles around Longbottom and Granger. I can't believe the two of them were even admitted to the school. If you like, I could write to my father and ask him to intervene. None of the Slytherins should be restricted from getting a complete education here. He's on the board of governors you know."

"Maybe," Sayuri said, turning the possibility over in her mind. "I spoke to Professor Snape about it today. There may be another way to work something out before we have to go that far."

"That's good," Draco said. "Professor Snape will always have our backs you know. And my father will back him up when needed."

Sayuri nodded. "Thanks Draco. I'm going to head upstairs. See you all tomorrow."

"Goodnight," Crabbe said. Goyle grunted in acknowledgement as she passed him.

Up in their dorm, Pansy seemed agitated. The girls were huddled together, speaking in hushed voices which stopped as soon as Sayuri came in through the door.

"Getting a little cozy with Draco tonight, aren't you?" There was an accusation in Pansy's voice. She recognized it in the tone that Ino Yamanaka took with their pink haired classmate as those two fought over Sasuke.

_Dammit,_ why did that memory have to come up all of a sudden? She hadn't even thought of her former classmates for years.

"Not really," she shrugged. "He was just trying to figure out a way to make Hooch let me back into flying class. Seems to think it's an embarrassment to Slytherin to have one of us barred from such a basic subject."

"It is pretty embarrassing," Daphne said evenly. "Especially when you have someone like Longbottom losing control of his broom and breaking his arm on the first day."

Millicent giggled at the memory.

"Tell me about it," Sayuri grumbled. She flopped onto her bed and pulled the curtains closed. "I'm ready for today to be over."

The others went back to quietly talking. Sayuri's thoughts turned to her cousin.

What was Sasuke doing right now? What was he thinking about? She had no doubt that he'd graduated and become a genin by now. He was always at the top of the class. There was so much she wanted to ask him about though. Like who else was on his team? And who was their jounin sensei?

How much could she ask without putting either one of them in danger?

In the privacy of the lush brocade curtains she summoned Tsuchibue.

"Yo," he said, stretching one wing. "How is school?"

"_Pretty good_," she rolled her shoulders and slid easily back into speaking her native language. "_Did Sasuke get his letter?_"

_"Yeah, I gave it to a fat white cat to deliver so Sasuke wouldn't see me."_

"_FUKUMARU!_" she shouted. "He's ALIVE?" Her heart immediately started pounding, hard. Did that mean Sasuke had found and looked after him?

The conversation was interrupted by a shrill scream and gusting air as her bed drapes were thrown apart.

"Sayuri, I heard a MAN!" Pansy shrieked. "Are you okay?"

Sayuri winced at the loudness of her voice. "Sorry about that. It was just my bird."

Gemma the prefect came rushing in through the door. "What happened? Is anybody hurt?"

"I- no," Pansy said. "I thought I heard a man's voice but Sayuri says it's just her bird."

The crow in question hopped across her bedspread and croaked, "Hello, love," with his very best accent English accent. He'd picked up a few throwaway phrases pretty quickly hanging around The Hog's Head off and on in the past month. Sayuri thought it sounded rather good.

"He doesn't speak English very well," she said apologetically. "Sorry, I didn't mean to startle anyone."

"Well send him off to the owlery," Gemma said. "It's late, you girls should be asleep within the next half hour."

There was more grumbling among her dorm mates but they got ready. She'd wanted to have Tsuchibue help her write another letter to Sasuke before bed, but that was hard to do when everyone was supposed to be asleep. Then again, she wasn't even sure what she could safely write to him. It needed a bit more thinking on.

_"Were you ever able to find Koeda?_" she whispered to the bird. _"I've been worried about him ever since he got left behind on your mountain."_

_"Yeah, but he didn't want to come back,"_ the bird croaked in his deep voice. "_He really likes my tree. And the tree is already healthier with him looking after it. Could you gather up some more botakus? If I take them back to Koeda-kun they can start a little colony together."_

If she was honest with herself, it stung. She'd loved that little bowtruckle, and he'd been her friend for so long. Tonight could be a good night to sneak into the forest and gather some of his own kind to keep him company though. It would keep her awake at least so she wouldn't miss her early morning appointment with Flint. Besides, she missed the freedom of the treetops. She had a hard time feeling sleepy when she was supposed to, and Jiji hadn't been so strict about going out. Usually if she got restless in the night he was fine with her going to sit with the rest of the goat herd in their little stone barn.

_"Tsuchi-kun, I'll summon you later tonight after I get to my old tree,"_ she whispered.

The black bird gave her hair an affectionate nibble before he disappeared.

While the other girls busied themselves getting their nightclothes ready, Sayuri rummaged through her trunk. If she was going into the forest, it would be best if her skin was completely covered. Hair and face too. The last thing she needed was for one of the staff to glimpse her out on the grounds at night and be able to identify her.

The clothes Jiji had bought for her were all black at her request. She'd told him it was so she wouldn't have to worry about whether they matched or not, but they also doubled as good clothes for being less visible at night. She pulled a baggy, long sleeved sweater out and slipped that on. A pair of loose pants that she rolled the hems of so they wouldn't drag on the ground.

Then she stuffed a silk scarf, pair of gloves, and her knife under her pillow. She pulled her covers up and lay in bed while the other girls wandered in and out of the washroom, brushing their teeth and hair. Putting on their nightclothes. Gemma had to come back twice to tell them to lie down and be quiet.

Eventually the other girls' breathing had softened and evened out in deep sleep.

Without bothering to take off the blindfold, she wrapped the scarf over her head like a hood, wound it over her face, and tied it at the nape of her neck with long tails hanging down her back. Slipped the gloves on and the knife into her pocket. Then as a second thought, slipped the pillowcase off and stuffed that into her pocket too.

Cracking open the door at the top of the stairs, she felt out the common room. Some older students, including Gemma, were talking softly among themselves in front of the fireplace.

Eventually they picked up their books and things and took themselves to bed. Once she was absolutely certain they were gone, she slipped out. Passed by the fireplace radiating heat from its smoldering embers, and into the damp halls. At one point she had to clamber up onto an archway and lie quietly on the cool stone as Mr. Filch shuffled past, his clanking lantern sending metallic echoes down the corridor.

There was another tense moment where she heard footsteps. Harry's clear strong presence along with three other students moved through the corridors. One was the boy who had broken his arm. She decided to ignore them. He was off doing his own thing, and she didn't think his friends would appreciate a random Slytherin appearing right now. She just needed to get to those bowtruckles, then return to the common room without being caught.

The doors to the castle were heavy but closed softly behind her. The grass cool and dewy. Smiling to herself, she leaned into the heavy night blanketing the grounds. Darted across the lawn toward the looming treeline. Sprang into the branching canopy. Bark crunched softly under the soles of her shoes as she ran. She wished she could risk taking the scarf off so she could feel the air on her skin.

It didn't take long to reach her old tree. The old duck feather and moss nest was surprisingly well tended by the resident bowtruckles. The spindly creatures swarmed onto her outstretched arms. Tiny feet snagged in her sweater as they climbed. She shrugged out of the scarf, let them crawl into her hair and smiled.

_Whoa, how did I ever fit in here?_ she wondered, tentatively putting a toe into the hollow where she used to sleep.

Leaning back against the trunk, she inhaled the cool air. There was something profoundly comforting about having the solid trunk of a tree at your back. Doubly so when that tree was filled with the warm hum of nature energy.

_"Hey guys, you wanna go with Tsuchi-kun to live in his tree with Koeda?_" she asked in her native language. She'd never spoken to them in English, and wasn't about to start.

They preened her hair and generally settled around her shoulders in answer. She cast the summoning jutsu, Tsuchibue appearing as promised. "I guess I'll just put a few in a bag for you to take. If any of them hate it there, you can just bring them back."

_"Sounds good,"_ he said.

Carefully picking bowtruckles out of her hair, she set seven of them in the pillowcase and tied it shut. The crow grabbed it in his beak and vanished.

She hoped they liked the crow realm.

The remaining bowtruckles sat with her, dozing in her hair and tickling her neck for a good long time until she finally pulled them off one by one. Slowly she began wrapping her head with the scarf again. She didn't really want to go back to the common room. She missed the freedom and open air of the branches. She missed letting her senses expand and tasting the air in the forest. Nothing could sneak up on her out here.

Springing into the high branches of a nearby tree, she began slowly picking her way back toward the school grounds. Carefully avoiding the groves where the giant spiders hunted, she also moved clear of the centaurs as they stood eerily motionless and silent in clearings under the stars. It was a mystery to her why they liked to do that.

The further she moved from the wiggentree, the more the forest felt wrong though. Creatures that normally crept through the undergrowth were unusually still. Even the bugs that she hated so much were silent. She crouched on a thick oak branch. A lone beast galloped through the dense undergrowth, panic marring its clear, glittering presence.

Every muscle in Sayuri's body tensed. She had never felt a unicorn that distressed before. In the brief time she had lived in the forest, she had never known anything to hunt them. The centaurs positively adored them. Even the spiders gave them a wide berth, and there was no way the oni-things could catch up to something so swift and fierce.

A second unicorn followed after a few minutes. It stumbled as it galloped, splashing parts of itself against the forest. Nauseating sweetness invaded her nose, settling in the back of her throat.

She fought the urge to vomit. She'd never smelled unicorn blood, but guessed that was it.

Heaving and gasping with the effort, the wounded creature paused beneath her tree.

Overwhelming decay invaded her senses. She shuddered, reflexively freezing in place. It was a putrid, empty hunger. One that threatened to devour anything that presented itself.

She was _not_ going to present herself.

_She was not._

Not until the first unicorn came scrambling back. With them together, it was hard to ignore how much smaller the first felt. It whinnied shrilly, the scream tearing through her. She didn't need to understand unicorn to know what the smaller creature was saying.

_Mother._

Her jaw clenched painfully. The foal shrieked again.

_Mother, don't die!_

Pulling the knife from her pocket she sprang off the branch with enough force splinters of wood scattered behind her.

The thing registered a moment of utter surprise, just before she collided with it. It was bigger and heavier than her, but her momentum shoved it back. Lashing out with the knife, the blade caught and tore fabric.

Second pass it sliced into something fleshy. A gurgling snarl bubbled up from whatever, whoever it was.

The mother unicorn had pulled herself to her feet and stumbled ahead, which meant Sayuri could safely use her family's signature technique. Springing backward, her hands rolled through the seals. Hot chakra filled her lungs as she sucked cold air through the fabric of the scarf.

_"Katon! Gokakyu no Jutsu!"_

A dense ball of searing flame expanded from the chakra she blew between her gloved fingers. The radiant heat singed her clothing and engulfed the putrid unicorn hunter.

At least, she thought it did. Growing rage swirled inside the fireball. A deafening hiss filled the forest. Boiling mist filled with rotting chakra engulfed them both, choking and blinding her.

More chakra slashed out at her, clipping her arm.

She ran.

As she escaped the mist, she could only feel the presence of one unicorn. She veered toward it, slipping into a crouch as she reached the animal.

"Move! You have to run!" she ran a hand up the damp body of the still-warm mother unicorn until she found the trembling foal. "That thing is coming this way. It'll kill you too."

The foal shivered, pressing its head against its dead mother.

"Look," she whispered in a thick voice. "I know exactly what you're feeling right now. And I'm sorry. Nobody can bring her back, just like nobody could bring my mum back. I'll take you to Hagrid, he'll know what to do."

It didn't respond, but didn't fight her as she ducked beneath its belly and pushed up with her legs. The foal laid across her narrow shoulders, drooping head hanging around Sayuri's knees. She gripped a long silky leg slick with blood and she ran.

The thing stopped chasing them. It had stopped at the mother unicorn's body, but she couldn't afford to slow down yet.

Soon least a dozen hooves thundered around her. A commanding voice shouted for her to stop. Reluctantly, Sayuri slowed. She hated dealing with the centaurs, but maybe they could actually help this time.

"What have you done?" A deep voice filled with contempt demanded.

"ME? I saved it. Something horrible killed its mum," she said, gripping the foal's body a little tighter. "Unless you're willing to take it in and look after it, I'm bringing it to Hagrid."

"We will allow you to pass this once," another centaur said. "But if you trespass again we will not hesitate to defend our forest."

"Maybe you should worry less about me and try defending it from whatever killed the unicorn," she snarled. "Maybe if you didn't spend all night standing around in a daze its mother would still be alive." In a furious burst, she rocketed through the trees toward Hagrid's cottage.

How _dare_ they. Useless, blustering assholes playing with their bows and arrows. Why did everyone think she was out to hurt someone today?

She had never been so relieved to smell the smoke curling from Hagrid's chimney. When she reached the cottage, she hunched forward to better balance the foal while she released one of its legs and pounded on the door with a clenched fist.

"Hagrid help! Are you awake in there? Get up!"

Fang's booming bark resonated through the small building. There was a tremendous creaking, and the thuds of enormous footsteps. The door swung open.

"What in – MERLIN SAYURI!" Hagrid's giant hand seized her whole body and yanked her through the door. "Is that unicorn blood? What are yeh doin' out here with a foal? Is it hurt bad?"

"Its mum is dead Hagrid, something killed her. I was barely able to get the baby away."

Hagrid threw his coat on and grabbed the crossbow by his door. "You stay here with Fang. Tell me where it is, mebbe whatever did it is still near and I can catch it."

"It doesn't matter. She's dead. We have to help this one." Nerves finally catching up to her, Sayuri's legs started to tremble.

"Oh course, poor little mite." The weight of the foal was suddenly gone as Hagrid tenderly lifted it off of her and cradled it in one giant arm. "Tell me ever'thing then. What happened?" His voice was grim and he didn't sit down.

"Well, I went to visit my old bowtruckles and that went fine. Then on my way back to the castle, a baby unicorn ran by. I thought that was weird since it was alone, but then the mother came along too. She was already hurt real bad."

She then described the sounds she'd heard, the overwhelming foul presence. How she'd cast a fireball at it and it had countered the spell with water somehow.

"What's that on yer arm now?" he said, voice thick with worry. "Summat cut clean through yer sweater. Yer bleedin'. Let's have a look at it."

"Oh yeah, it sliced my arm somehow. But it didn't touch me."

"It's too bad yeh couldn' see what it was. I'll need ter let Dumbledore know. And really, what are yeh thinkin' bein' out here in the dark! I know yeh can take care of yerself in the forest, but it's still dangerous. Yer a student now and have ter follow the rules like everyone else. It's off limits."

"Sorry," she mumbled.

He heaved a sigh. "S'all right. I know yeh mean well. An' I understand about wanting teh visit with yer creatures. If it weren't for yeh, this foal here would've been a goner. Yeh saved his life. Jes, come get me next time yeh want ter go into the forest."

She exhaled sharply through clenched teeth, the tension she'd been holding eased and for some reason she felt like crying. Hagrid could always be counted on to see the best in people.

"Thanks."

"Fer what?"

"Just, for saying that. Seems like ever since I got sorted into Slytherin everyone thinks everything I do is for the wrong reasons."

Fingers as thick as her bicep gently turned her arm, then wound a soft bandage around it. "Well that's just rubbish. Yer a kind little girl an' anyone who can't see that is blind." He cleared his throat awkwardly. "Sorry, I didn' mean it like that. Yeh know."

"I know," she smiled. Hagrid was and always would be one of her favorite people.

"Yeh should take yer arm ter Madam Pomfrey as soon as yeh can, but it should be all right fer now."

"What time is it?"

"Four am or so. Yeh stay here with Fang and the unicorn. I need ter try and find what's left of its mum. When I get back I'll walk yeh up ter the castle. Help yerself ter anything while yeh wait."

She didn't feel much like eating. After he left, she sat with Fang and the baby unicorn on a dusty pile of blankets Fang liked to use for a bed. The poor little animal was practically catatonic. She pulled her gloves off and gently stroked its velvety ears. There was a smooth nub on its forehead where it would grow a horn some day, sort of like the nubs on the baby goats born at The Hog's Head every spring.

"Sorry I didn't save her," she mumbled. "I was too weak. But at least you made it. Losing your mum feels terrible forever, but some day you'll meet other unicorns and make some friends. And friends help a little."

It made a pathetic nickering sound against her leg. Fang whined and rested his head on the baby animal. Eventually she and Fang got the foal settled. It seemed to be deeply asleep, and didn't even bother lifting its head when Hagrid finally returned.

* * *

Severus paced in a sheltered part of the courtyard where he could view the edge of the Forbidden Forest, limned with the grayest of predawn light. Fog puffed from his mouth as he breathed the damp chilly air.

Quirrel still hadn't returned. The man had left the castle hours earlier. For someone supposedly so terrified of vampires and other dark creatures, he certainly went out of his way to maximize his chances of encountering one.

Severus' sharp gaze focused on two distant figures walking together around the edge of the forest toward the castle. One hulking form which was obviously Hagrid, the other much too small to be Quirrel but too large for Filius.

A student then.

He waited for them to get closer, already thinking of all the horrible punishments he would inflict. The points he could deduct. When they finally drew close enough, Hagrid seemed surprised to see him emerge from the shadows among the pillars in the courtyard. Severus half expected to find Potter at the groundskeeper's side. His gaze fixed on the student, lip curled and ready to deliver a scathing rebuke.

Only, it wasn't Potter's disheveled black hair he was looking at.

"Miss Uchiha," he said in a cold voice. "I expect there is a very good explanation for you being out of bed this early, and covered in unicorn blood no less."

"She was helpin' me, Professor," Hagrid interjected.

"She can speak for herself. If you don't mind I'll take her from here."

"Actually, I was takin' her ter Madam Pomfrey. She's got a nasty cut on her arm. After that I need teh see Professor Dumbledore."

"I can handle a cut," he said. "Surely if it's important enough to wake Dumbledore at this hour you shouldn't be delayed with detours to the infirmary."

"Right. Sayuri, if yer feelin' well enough later today I'd wager that baby unicorn wouldn't mind seein' a friendly face after ever'thing that happened."

Severus' dark gaze darted between the two. Clearly _something_ exciting had transpired. Momentarily torn between waiting to catch Quirrel sneaking back into the castle and learning why exactly his student was in this condition so early in the morning, he turned on his heel.

"Follow me, Miss Uchiha," he said.

The small girl shadowed him as he walked back into the castle and down a corridor. "What time is it?" she asked quietly. "Flint wanted me to meet him really early at the quidditch pitch. He said before breakfast."

"Mr. Flint is extremely dedicated to his sport, but even he won't be out of bed for another half hour at least."

Her posture relaxed. "Oh good, I was afraid I might sleep in by accident."

"May I assume that is why you are awake at such an ungodly early hour?"

She nodded. The silvery blood glistened brightly on her hair and shoulders, catching the feeble light with the movement. "I guess, I didn't want to oversleep. But he wasn't up yet, so I went out to do some running while I waited." She suddenly twisted her hands in an anxious movement. "Did I break curfew or something? I wasn't really sure what time it was exactly."

"Generally we do not have issues with students getting up too early," he drawled. "And really. Running?"

"You know, for exercise. I'm used to being a lot more active."

He looked over his shoulder at her with a raised eyebrow. There was no guile in her voice or posture.

They reached his office and he ushered her inside. Sat her in a chair. It then that he noticed the red dripping from her fingertips. Sighing wearily, he had her pull up her sleeve and unbound the bandage that had been soaked through. The cut was shallow, and should have already clotted long before now.

"How did you get this wound?"

"Something attacked me. Well, actually it was probably trying to attack the unicorn."

"Was the foal injured?"

"No it-," she faltered, hair dropping over her face. "Hagrid said something killed its mum. Probably the same thing that attacked us. The blood, its mum's blood, got all over me when I carried the foal to his hut. Gave Hagrid quite a scare."

"You were able to outrun an attacker capable of bringing down a fully grown unicorn, while carrying a unicorn foal?" he asked. He didn't even bother to keep the skepticism out of his voice.

"I'm a fast runner," she huffed. "More people would be if they exercised regularly."

"Yes, I remember," he muttered, thinking back to that snowy morning in the Forbidden Forest when an entire branch of bowtruckles nearly clawed his eyes out. Turning her wrist in his hand he ran a finger along the length of the wound, feeling for residual magic. Cold fury settled in his gut at what he found. This was very clearly the work of Sectumsempra, a spell of his own creation. Which meant that someone, not something, had killed the unicorn.

How dare someone use his own spell against _his_ student.

He drew out his wand and carefully waved it over the cut. "Vulnera Sanentur," he crooned the incantation softly, song-like. Satisfied that the trickle of blood had eased, he repeated it twice more to cleanse and then close the wound. With a flick of his wrist he wordlessly summoned a small bottle of dittany.

"You have a nice voice," she said unexpectedly.

The small spot of warmth that blossomed in his chest jarred him. He chose not to reply. Instead he uncapped the jar. "This is essence of dittany. It is rather expensive, but helpful for preventing the formation of scars."

"I don't mind scars," she absently ran a finger over her newly healed skin. "Not like I can see them."

"Hold out your arm."

She obediently presented her pale forearm.

"You are extraordinarily lucky. This wound on your arm was not very deep, but it would not have healed without the correct counter curse. If it had hit you squarely you would have lost your arm and likely died of exsanguination."

"What does exsanguination mean?"

"Blood loss," he clarified.

"Oh. If it needed a counter curse to heal, that means a curse cut me?"

"Yes."

"Can creatures do that? Or, only people?"

He licked his lips, weighing the consequences of being honest. He didn't want to impart false knowledge. Those sort of lies could result in getting someone hurt or killed later. But he also did not want to encourage her to look into the matter more deeply.

"Cursed wounds may be inflicted by some creatures, or spells cast by a witch or a wizard," he said carefully.

"Will you teach me the counter curse?"

He let out a huff of thinly veiled relief as he applied the dittany. "Another day. I suggest we quickly return you to your dormitory and you get cleaned up before Mr. Flint is ready to meet on the quidditch pitch. You smell like someone set fire to a wet dog. Do not leave the common room without him."

She nodded, folding her hands in her lap.

After he put away the dittany, he had her stand and carefully vanished the unicorn blood from her hair and clothing. He was almost one hundred percent certain he knew who had attacked his student, and did not want to risk passing the very man in the corridor with a blood covered first year in tow so soon after the incident. Though if he encountered the traitor now, he would have a difficult time not blasting Quirrel in the face with the same curse used to cut the hapless first year.

With any luck, Quirrel had no idea who had taken the foal from him.

The other question was why? Why was he out hunting unicorns?

He and Albus had much to discuss.

* * *

**Author's Note: Still cranking out stuff to try and stay sane during quarantine. Hope everyone is staying safe and feeling well!**

**Edit: Argh, sorry for the re-uploads. Some of the formatting got messed up on the first try. **


	20. A Gift for Sasuke

After an early morning of experimenting at the pitch, Marcus Flint and Sayuri determined that if she climbed up inside the scaffolding under the stands and hid in a particular spot, she could just reach the keeper with her genjutsu. The keeper was an ideal target, as they were relatively stationary. From Flint's point of view, she would know the right times to distract the keeper by listening to the announcer's commentary.

The bad thing was, her hiding spot was uncomfortably close to where the teachers sat. The illusion would have to be very subtle and she'd have to be very careful so that none of the spectators noticed the interference.

"We need something McGonagall would never suspect," Flint said, hovering on his broom just outside the fabric hangings on the stands. "Take some time to figure one out. After you do, I want you to try it on me. Don't warn me ahead of time. If I can tell someone's casting a spell on me we can't use it at the match."

Crouching, Sayuri shifted onto the balls of her feet where she had wedged herself against the huge, rough hewn timbers and leaned against the heavy canvas separating her from the older boy. "That makes sense," she said. "When is the first game?"

"The season starts in early November. First up will be Slytherin vs Gryffindor. If you're ready to help us by then, I'll teach you to fly after that first game is over with."

A thrill of excitement went through her in spite of the exhaustion setting in from running around the forest all night and fighting a unicorn killer. This, with its surrounding secrecy. The subtlety she needed to finesse through it. It almost felt like a real mission. Like something she might have been assigned if she'd finished school in Konoha, and had her own genin teammates. She even needed to create a completely new genjutsu for it.

She couldn't mess this up.

"Yes sir, Captain Flint."

"Good. Now, grab my hand." He thrust it through a gap in the hangings and patted the nearest wooden beam, sending small vibrations through the structure like an insect treading on a spider's web. "I'll take you back down to the pitch."

Sayuri reached out. Flint's hand was warm and rough as he caught hers in it, then hooked his other arm around her waist and maneuvered her out and securely in front of him onto the broom.

Straddling the broom was another odd sensation. It didn't feel like she imagined sitting on a broom handle would. It felt like there was an actual cushion there.

"How is this so comfortable to sit on? I thought it would just be a stick!" she asked, as the older boy steered them toward the grassy lawn below.

"Cushioning charms," he said. "Without them it'd be a pretty miserable experience."

Together they walked back to the Great Hall where the rest of their housemates were already digging into breakfast. After she sat and pulled a handful of rolls onto her plate, yet another owl arrived bearing gifts for Draco. _His mother must really love him,_ she thought wistfully as he tore into the paper packaging. It had hardly been two weeks since school started and he seemed to get something at least every other day.

Maybe instead of a letter she could send Sasuke a gift. Edible things were always nice, but if she remembered right he didn't care much for sweet things. Plus food could spoil and he might not trust food from a random owl. A trinket then? Something magical, useful would be best. Sasuke would like a useful thing. But what could she give that might help a shinobi?

Omnioculars like the ones she had given Harry for his birthday might come in handy on a mission. Especially with the record and replay function Hagrid had described. You could spy on someone, and document the actual evidence that way.

Weapons were always useful, but so were medical supplies. Plus medical supplies could actually save someone's life.

"Sayuri!" Pansy snapped her fingers to get Sayuri's attention. "What on earth are you so distracted by?"

"Oh, sorry. I was just thinking."

"Where were you this morning?" Daphne asked, exasperation bleeding into her voice. "We didn't see you in your bed."

"I woke up early and went outside to exercise," Sayuri said, pinning down a sausage with her fork.

Her dorm-mates regarded her with confusion for a moment, but their attention was quickly diverted by Draco passing a new round of sweets around to his first year house mates.

After breakfast was finished, she made a brief detour to the common room on her way to their Friday potions class to fetch her bag. Blaise had saved a seat for her at his little table in the back corner of the potions classroom. His chakra always felt calm with a weight and smoothness like rich fine silt layered in a riverbed. She managed to get situated just as the Gryffindors noisily filed in through the door and settled into their seats.

"This week you will be learning the intricacies of brewing the wiggenweld potion," Snape said in a low silky voice as he swept to the front of the room. "It is an essential brew for anyone with aspirations of becoming a healer, yet is simple enough even the most dunderheaded of you should be able to manage it without melting my floor."

One of the Gryffindor boys made a faint whimpering sound

Excitedly, Sayuri got out her parchment and took meticulous notes on his lecture, still writing in Japanese. Tsuchibue could help her go over them later.

When it came to brewing, Snape was just as vicious toward Harry and his housemates as he had been the prior Friday. Criticizing everything from the colors of their potions to the consistency and odor. Draco and the students that stayed in his orbit sniggered when Professor Snape took a point off a boy named Weasley for 'glowering at a teacher'.

She and Blaise worked well together. He read instructions out loud to her in a clear, quiet voice. He wasn't patronizing, and he was competent at potions. Their completed brew smelled faintly of mint. Blaise carefully ladled it into a flask, labeled it, and Sayuri left it on the professor's desk to be graded later.

As they cleaned their work space together, one of the Gryffindor potions went horribly wrong. A heavy, cloying smell filled the classroom as the-boy-who-whimpered frantically tried to stir it.

"Do I need to stand on my chair again?" she asked Blaise.

"No. That oaf gelled his potion somehow. It might as well be a cauldron full of cheese."

The unfortunate boy audibly shivered as Snape approached and stood over him. "Longbottom, would you care to explain how you managed to transform a simple healing potion into a brick?" he said softly. "No? You may serve your detention this evening then, scrubbing this monstrosity clean by hand."

The Gryffindor side of the room prickled with indignation and anger. She wasn't sure why to be honest. When someone messed up that badly at the academy, her old senseis would have been ten times harder on them. Last week a lot of students had nearly gotten hurt because of that kid. As far as she could tell the teachers at Hogwarts didn't even_ hit_ students.

Back at the academy there was a boy in Sasuke's class that nobody liked. He was hard to miss with his loud voice, bright orange jumpsuit, and yellow hair. The senseis were always shouting at him. _Really_ shouting. She had even seen Mizuki-sensei and a couple of other teachers backhand him on different occasions, but it was more common for them to tie him up and force him to spend hours cleaning up whatever prank he had pulled.

Her mother especially never let her spend time around that boy. Sayuri always wondered why someone would keep causing so much trouble when it brought so much grief back on them.

After class ended, Harry clomped over to where she sat slipping her notes into her bag. "Sayuri, are you coming down to Hagrid's this afternoon? You can walk with us if you like."

Blaise snorted softly behind his hand. She didn't get a chance to reply because Snape strolled up to them.

"I'm afraid Miss Uchiha has a meeting with the headmaster, Potter." he said softly. "Unless you want to cost Gryffindor points for delaying her, I suggest you get out of the way."

"It was just a simple question, _sir,_" Harry said in a testy voice. He shifted his bag on his shoulder. "Anyway Sayuri, you should come down if you have time later."

"We'll see," she said evenly. She had no idea why those two hated each other so much, but was determined not to get drawn into the middle of it.

Snape's low voice interrupted as she slung her own bag over her shoulder. "Miss Uchiha, remain here. I have business with the headmaster as well. You wouldn't know the password to his office so I will escort you."

After everyone else had left for lunch and the door to the classroom fell closed, Snape asked in a deadly quiet voice, "You didn't tell Potter about the unicorn did you?"

She shook her head. "Only you and Hagrid. But, I guess they'll see it if they visit Hagrid today." Nobody had asked her to keep it secret. She just really didn't want a lot of different people examining her story closely since she actually had broken a lot of school rules. It was bad enough several school staff knew, and that there was were two versions out there now. The one Hagrid had experienced, and the one she told Snape.

"That cannot be helped," he said, voice thick with disdain. "Keep your involvement quiet if possible, and in the future do not leave the common room before breakfast without one of your peers." He inhaled like he was about to say more, then thought better of it.

"Is that what Professor Dumbledore wants to talk about?" she asked.

"Potentially."

"Sir, after you're done grading my potion may I have some of it back?"

"What for?" His tone was suspicious, probing.

"Well, during your lecture I thought maybe it would be good to keep some with me. Just in case."

"Just in case," he repeated. There was a rustle of his robes as he turned and strode toward the door. "If it is satisfactory, then I suppose. See me this evening."

_Yes!_ she thought happily. A healing potion was something Sasuke could use. It wouldn't spoil like food. And maybe, if she wrote a letter to go with it that was worded just right then Sasuke wouldn't wrongfully suspect it of being poison. Worst case scenario, he simply wouldn't use it. But it didn't hurt to send him some.

Just in case.

Snape walked ahead of her in silence. Students milling around quieted as he passed, their voices whispers in his wake. She felt like a bit of his shadow, passing through the halls relatively unnoticed and unremarked on which suited her just fine. They traveled up staircases, past the Great Hall, down twisting corridors and ascended one of the many towers

He paused in the middle of a short corridor where chakra swirled the thickest, with layers and layers of seals and spells laid on each other.

"Acid pops," he drawled.

A great rumbling filled the passage as something in the wall opened up. She climbed a newly revealed narrow staircase after him.

The room at the top of the winding staircase was completely overwhelming. It had definitely not been on the tour of Hogwarts that Dumbledore had given her three years ago. Every available space on the walls and all around the room was filled with hundreds of different residues, different magics. The headmaster's firey presence filled the room, echoed by some living thing smoldering near his desk like a glowing coal ready to erupt in flames.

She almost missed the foggy presence of Mr. Ollivander until he rose from his seat to greet them.

"My child, it is so good to see you. You have no idea how excited I am. The materials were very difficult to work with, but not insurmountable and I am very anxious to see the result. Hello to you too, Professor Snape. I trust that your wand is still performing well?"

"Impeccable," he drawled.

Ollivander put a thin hand on her arm and guided her toward Professor Dumbledore. "They're right here on the headmaster's desk. I believe you will find either one of these wands much more agreeable than our prior attempts. Now, give this one a wave. It's camphor and a feather from your bird."

Sayuri reached for the wand. It was just lying there innocuously, yet there was something deep and resonant that made her hesitate. A raw and heavy presence that didn't care who or what it consumed if their power wasn't sufficient. Not in a malicious way, but with the indifference of a storm that didn't take notice of those it battered as it passed by.

"That's the one from Takigakure?" she asked, wracking her mind for what he'd told her before.

"Exactly right."

"I-, that one is too much."

"Perhaps now," the old man mused. "One day, it may be otherwise. I have no doubt you would master it in time if you chose. Try the second wand then. Pine and illusion crow feather, 12 and a half inches.

The second wand exuded no such warning. Her fingers touched it lightly at first, half expecting to be snapped at. They closed around the smooth handle. For a split second nothing happened. Then warmth blossomed from the wand, travelling up her arm. It wrapped around her, sinking through her skin and filling her bones. She had hated the idea of relying on a wand before, but now? She never wanted to be parted from this.

It had the same warmth as her father. She'd almost forgotten the sensation of tou-san resting his heavy hand on the top of her head. The tart flavor of his chakra, like a fire fed by molten copper.

"Go ahead and give it a wave," Ollivander encouraged breathlessly.

Trembling, she did.

The ambient nature energy coursing through the room resonated with the wand and welled up. A musical trilling filled the air, sinking into her very soul.

She could not speak at first. A reverent silence fell across the room as the strange song echoed inside not only her, but everyone present. Dumbledore finally spoke.

"How lovely," he said softly. "Fawkes and I thank you for the flowers."

"Flowers?" she asked, bewildered. "Who is Fawkes?" She hadn't sensed a fifth person in the room, and the thought that she'd missed someone disturbed her quite a bit.

"Fawkes is my phoenix. You and your wand did a little redecorating. I rather like it, don't you think so Garrett?"

"Simply marvelous," the wandmaker said, though she had the feeling he wasn't referring to the flowers.

"How much do I owe you, sir?" she asked turning to Mr. Ollivander. She hated to think how much such a wonderful tool might cost, and didn't want to give it up if Jiji couldn't afford it.

"Absolutely nothing dear girl. After all, you went to the trouble of obtaining these cores, without which neither wand would exist. All I ask is that you look after it, and keep me apprised of any unexpected properties. I've not had the chance to work with illusion crow feathers before."

"Mr. Ollivander and I were just discussing the woods collected for these wands," Dumbledore said pleasantly. "I believe in your homeland, the tree that donated the wood for that wand was known as a _'Hashirama tree'_."

_Hashirama_. She felt like she'd heard that name somewhere. Maybe at the academy?

"Your wand shows great promise as a healer's wand," Ollivander said in his wispy voice. "But you must discipline your thoughts when wielding it. Pine is especially sensitive to nonverbal spells."

Sayuri bowed to the old man, slipping into her old language. _"Thank you, Ollivander-sama. I will treasure it forever."_

_"No, thank_ you_. It was a privilege to meet your bird. If it wouldn't be too much trouble, I would like to personally thank the one who donated these feathers one day."_

_"One day,_" she promised.

"Miss Uchiha," Dumbledore said. "I have one question before you go. This morning during the attack, what were your impressions of the entity you encountered?"

"It seemed hungry," she said, straightening up. "Rotting, and hungry."

"Thank you," the headmaster said. "Unless you have something else you wish to discuss you may be excused now. Garrett, I enjoyed our visit greatly. However, Professor Snape has another matter which requires my attention now. We must do this more often."

"Certainly," the old wandmaker said. "I would like that very much."

Sayuri walked with Mr. Ollivander to the door and picked her way slowly down the winding stairs. He moved even more slowly than her. She paused, then held an arm out. "Mr. Ollivander, do you need some help?"

She felt his smile, rather than saw it.

"Yes please," his gnarled hand rested on her proffered forearm. "These old legs don't take stairs as well as they used to."

* * *

Healthy branches coiled delicately from the wooden picture frames. Previous headmasters craned their necks to peer through the distinctively shaped oak leaves now obscuring their portraits. Albus himself was wreathed in twisting wood, leaves, and flowers that had erupted from his desk and chair. Even Fawkes' perch sported a flourish of crimson housenka flowers.

"Are you going to leave them?" Severus mused. The residual phoenix-song had left him with a lightness of heart he rarely experienced, and he was reluctant to disturb it.

"Certainly. It's a refreshing change from the usual bland woodwork," Dumbledore leaned back in his seat, his blue eyes creasing with a serene smile.

"Please don't _leaf_ us like this!" called out Dilys Derwent. Several of the other portraits glared in her direction as she giggled.

"If you are going to keep these, these frivolous ornaments," fumed Phineas Nigellus from his canvas abode, "at least prune them back enough that we can see what's going on!" The other former headmasters nodded and murmured in agreement. Dumbledore gave his hand a lazy wave, the branches parting tidily to allow them to better see.

"What exactly is a hashirama tree?" Severus asked, his mind turning to potential potions applications of a new-to-him substance, as much as he was delaying the inevitable conversation about the unicorn.

"When I was much, much younger, I had the privilege of visiting Miss Uchiha's homeland. There I met many memorable and unique individuals. One was a promising young wizard named Hashirama Senju. He had a curious gift with plants. The tree that donated the wood for her wand is likely one of his creations."

"And where exactly is her homeland?"

"She speaks fluent Japanese. Why would you think it was elsewhere?" Dumbledore smiled at him, the picture of doddering innocence for those who did not know better.

"Lucius Malfoy seems to be under the impression her origins are a bit more exotic than that and insisted I stay alert for anything unusual about the child. I must confess, none of the numerous texts published by Japanese potioneers have made any mention of this so-called hashirama tree. Not to mention the wandless spells she's shown proficiency in are absurdly advanced."

"Goodness, Lucius does move quickly. When Miss Uchiha is ready to discuss her past, I would hope that is information she would trust her head of house with," was all the old man said. Severus knew that was all he was going to get out of him on the subject today.

Sighing deeply, he stood and wandered over to the regal phoenix. "It's not often Fawkes graces us with a song," he murmured. The bird tilted his head to regard the younger man with luminous, golden eyes. "I regret that we must taint our meeting with darker matters."

"Even so, his light won't be driven out so easily."

Severus nodded in acknowledgement. "I trust Hagrid has informed you of the slain unicorn."

"And that Miss Uchiha was able to rescue its foal," Dumbledore added.

"According to her. It is unfortunate she is not able to give a description of the attacker. I treated her for a cut arm afterward." Severus' expression darkened. "Someone hit her with _Sectumsempra_. The most distinct possibility is that it was Quirrel. He was out of the castle the entire night. Surely attacking a student is grounds for action."

Dumbledore pressed his fingertips together, deep in thought. "Quirrel isn't the only possibility," he said softly. "Hagrid reported that the mother unicorn was drained of her blood. We know that Voldemort is desperate to return. Based on Miss Uchiha's impressions, I believe it is_ he_ who preyed on the poor beast."

A chill swept through Severus, sour bile rising in his throat. To think that the Dark Lord himself might be out in the forest at this very moment-

"_Then FIRE Quirrel_." His voice shook. "Surely this is grounds for termination. If he is conspiring with You-Know-Who then allowing him access to the students, much less the Potter boy, is the height of foolishness."

"The stone is in no danger of falling into either of their hands. If we act prematurely, Quirrel will at best simply lose his position at the school yet actively continue to serve his master. By delaying, we should be able to trap him. If he is caught in the process of trying to steal the stone or conspiring with Voldemort directly then we will have the opportunity to deliver a permanent blow. I would much prefer to have Quirrel safely contained in Azkaban than enable him to continue as he is. The stone isn't Voldemort's only possible means of restoring his body."

"But the safety of the students," Severus hissed. "Whoever was hunting the unicorn could have easily killed the girl with that curse. It's pure luck that _I_ was the one to treat it, or it would have never stopped bleeding."

"And I thank you for it," Dumbledore said, his somber face looking very much out of place framed by a rainbow of merrily blooming flowers. "As long as the students continue to follow the rules, they will be in no life threatening danger. Please continue to keep a close eye on Quirrel."

"Albus," the younger man began pacing. "If Quirrel did happen to be present when Miss Uchiha intervened do you not think his knowledge of her involvement will put her in danger?"

"I think Severus, that their primary objective is the stone. Neither will risk drawing undue attention to their activities in the name of pursuing an inconsequential first year who was unable to identify her attacker."

_Inconsequential because she isn't one of your precious Gryffindors,_ he thought sourly. "What of the Potter boy then?" he spat. "He will want to destroy the boy."

"He certainly will," Albus said. "Which is why Quirrel must be monitored, and Harry must follow the rules."

A frown pulled at the corners of Severus' mouth. "Yes Albus. Is that all?"

"That is all."

A deep feeling of unease had settled over the potions master by the end of their conversation. His cloak billowed out behind him as he briskly went down the winding stairs outside the headmaster's office. If the Dark Lord was indeed in the Forbidden Forest it was highly likely he had assistance in bringing down the unicorn. And if Quirrel was that assistant, the fact that he had the capacity to harm a Slytherin first year in the process meant none of the students were insulated from the danger he posed.

Most especially insolent, spoiled, famous little Gryffindors who believed the rules didn't apply to them.

Miss Uchiha could perhaps be trusted to adhere to school rules and the safety they offered. At least, the rules that mattered. If Marcus Flint took her under his wing so to speak, he knew he could trust the older boy to keep her out of life threatening trouble. But Potter? He was willing bet that the insufferable brat had already broken half a dozen rules worthy of expulsion and been pardoned for all of them.

To make things worse, Potter had inexplicably decided to show an interest in her. He knew first hand how difficult life could be for a half-blood Slytherin associating with a no-name Gryffindor. For a no-name Slytherin associating with the blessed boy-who-lived himself, it would be much, much worse. Especially with dark wizards targeting the boy.

This was all assuming the brat wasn't simply following in his arrogant father's footsteps, setting her up for seven years worth of malicious pranks and bullying.

Perhaps, all things considered, something a bit more potent than a Wiggenweld potion brewed by a pair of first years was warranted.

Just in case.

* * *

Harry and Ron decided to go down to the Great Hall for lunch before heading over to Hagrid's. They both liked the giant groundskeeper immensely, but having experienced his rock cakes once already decided that it was best to visit him with full stomachs. They took their time having second and third helpings of pie so by the time they got to the little stone cottage it was already early afternoon.

Excitedly, Harry rapped on Hagrid's door. The giant man threw it open, grinning widely at the two boys through his bushy beard. "Harry! Come in and have a seat yeh two. Jes keep it quiet in here. I've got an orphan unicorn and we finally got him to eat summat jes now."

Ron peered around curiously, his gaze settling on the small Slytherin sitting on the edge of Hagrid's bed. She held a bottle over a gleaming golden foal that was lying halfway on and halfway off her lap. It sucked noisily, white bubbles foaming up around its mouth. Harry was quite surprised to find Sayuri had beaten them there.

"That's a unicorn?" Harry asked eagerly. "I thought it would be white." The tail hair he kept wrapped around his omniocular lens had sort of a silvery multicolored sheen to it, but it hadn't given him the impression of coming from a gold colored animal.

"They're gold fer the firs' seven years," Hagrid said. "After that they turn white. An' this one's too little fer his horn yet."

"Sayuri, this is my friend, Ron," Harry said, feeling a little awkward that she couldn't see who he was trying to introduce. "He's in our year, a Gryffindor like me."

"Ron Weasley," Ron said, leaning forward. "Rotten luck having to stay after _potions_. Looks like you didn't have to stay _too_ long though."

"You mean awesome luck," she said grinning widely. "Mr. Ollivander finally finished my wand! I got to go to Dumbledore's office to pick it up."

"What? You mean you haven't had one this whole time?" Harry was astonished. They were already two weeks into the term. "I bet the teachers loved that."

Still smiling, Sayuri shrugged. "McGonagall was a bit annoyed, but I think she was honestly more upset that I didn't do better on the written homework. Flitwick has been really understanding about it though, and Blaise just uses his wand when we need one in potions."

Ron and Sayuri found some common ground complaining about all the written homework in Transfiguration. Hagrid refilled the now empty bottle from a silver pail of milk on the table and handed it back to the little girl. Fang started barking outside and Hagrid ducked out to see what was wrong.

"Harry, did everything turn out okay after McGonagall took you out of flying class?" she asked hesitantly, stroking the animal's chin as it drank.

"Oh!" In the excitement of becoming seeker, Harry had forgotten Sayuri had followed them and that McGonagall had told her off for doing so. "Yeah, it actually was fine. She didn't even punish me." He flashed a grin at Ron, who grinned back. He really, _really_ wanted to tell Sayuri about becoming seeker and getting to have his own broom already but Wood was adamant they keep it secret until the first match.

"Maybe, um, later this year I could teach you to fly," Harry offered instead. He was expecting her to jump at the opportunity, so was surprised when she simply shrugged.

"Professor Snape is getting one of my housemates to help me with it, so hopefully by then I'll be okay."

"Snape?" Ron said derisively. "That evil git wouldn't help his own mum if she'd been poisoned and he had the antidote in his pocket."

What Harry could see of Sayuri's face paled under the blindfold. "He is not an evil git. I don't know what his problem is with Harry, but he's always been nice to me."

"Of course he's nice to you," Ron said. "You're a Slytherin. He always favors his own house."

"I met him when I was 8, and he was nice to me back then too," she retorted. "He even read '_Babbity Rabbity and Her Cackling Stump'_ to me once."

It looked as if Ron was having trouble processing this alternate image of Snape because he stilled and one eye sort of twitched. "Well then your parents must have been Slytherins, because there's no way he'd just be nice to someone for nothing," he reasoned.

Harry grimaced and shook his head vigorously as Ron spoke, but the stubborn redhead didn't get the hint quickly enough.

Sayuri's mouth turned downward. She shrank in on herself, hugging the baby unicorn closer. "They weren't," she muttered. "He never met them. They didn't even go to school here."

"Oh," Ron said, deflating a little. "Where did they go to school then?"

"Abroad," she said glumly.

Desperate to change the subject Harry asked, "What's Babbity Rabbity?" The enormous door opened to let Hagrid through at that moment.

"It's sort of a baby story for wizarding children," said Ron. "Mum and dad read them to us when we were little. Ginny still loves that one. But Snape reading Babbity Rabbity?" he shook his head. "That'd make any_ normal_ little girl cry."

Hagrid gave Ron a stern look. "If yer talkin' about Sayuri here, she ain't a normal girl. She's exceptional." The half giant lumbered over to her. "That unicorn looks about full. Why don' yeh leave him there and I'll put him ter bed. Yeh look tired yerself. And no wonder after what happened this morning."

The Slytherin yawned. "I should probably head back to the castle and take a nap," she muttered, gently sliding the groggy foal off her legs.

"What happened this morning?" Harry asked. The half-giant's craggy brows had drawn together with worry as he tucked a knitted yellow blanket the size of a circus tent around the little foal.

Sayuri made her way over to Harry and patted his arm. "Nothing really. I just need to get more sleep." She rubbed the back of her head, mussing up her jagged black hair even more. "I have a hard time telling night and day apart, so sometimes it's hard to get rest when I'm supposed to." She angled her head toward Ron. "It was nice to meet you, Weasley."

Ron made a face. "Just call me Ron. I've got so many brothers nobody would know which one of us you were talking to otherwise."

"Okay, call me Sayuri then. Later Ron, Harry. Thanks for the rock cakes Hagrid!"

"Any time," Hagrid said, some of his usual cheer returning. "When you see Professor Snape next, tell him thank you from me for his help this mornin'."

The door closed softly behind her. Ron and Harry looked at each other, then at Hagrid.

"So, what happened this morning?" Harry asked.

Hagrid looked uncomfortable. "Oh, nuthin' yeh need to be worried about. I reckon if Sayuri wanted yeh to know, she would have told yeh."

That stung a little. He'd thought of Sayuri as a friend all along even though she'd been sorted into _Slytherin_ of all houses, but she already had secrets she wasn't sharing. The hurt must have shown on Harry's face because Hagrid hurried to add, "Oh, but I don' think she meant to snub yeh. She probably jes didn' want yeh ter worry."

"Worry about what?" Ron asked.

"Oh, yeh know," Hagrid waffled. "I suppose it won't hurt to tell yeh. Summat killed a unicorn. She managed to save this little mite from it and brought him ter me, but whatever did it hurt her."

Harry stood suddenly, his heart pounding. "Is she all right?"

"She's fine. Professor Snape was out on the grounds earlier'n usual and took her back ter the castle. Fixed her right up."

Ron's ears turned red and he sank down into his chair. "I suppose that's why she got so cross when I said that stuff about him."

"Probably," Harry said. "And Ron, you should also know that she's an orphan like me."

The redhead clapped a hand to his forehead and groaned. "Now you tell me."

* * *

Even though she was exhausted, Sayuri had a terrible time falling asleep.

She knew Ron hadn't meant anything by it, but his offhand comment about Snape not helping his own mum if she had been poisoned had dredged up buried memories of her own mother.

Poisoned.

Skin purpled and bruised looking. Dribbling foam from her mouth.

Sayuri clenched her fists as she laid in her bed, fighting the hot tears that leaked from beneath her eyelids.

_Why am I still so fucking weak? I couldn't even save the mother unicorn. How am I supposed to get my eyes back? How am I supposed to kill fucking Danzo and get revenge for my parents?_

Her hand found the smooth wand and hugged it to her chest. Let the residual throb of molten green copper soak into her and thought of her father. His perpetual smile. The weight of his hand on her head, messing up her hair.

Eventually her heart slowed and breathing eased. Sayuri would have slept straight through dinner if Millicent hadn't shaken her awake.

"Gemma says to make sure you get up and eat something," the other girl said. "So, come on. We're all heading down to the Great Hall now."

"Okay, just a minute." Sayuri groggily felt around for her blindfold until the other girl pushed it into her hand.

"Here it is," Millicent grunted. "I don't know why you wear it. Your face looks fine."

Sayuri slipped it on, making sure her bangs were freed. "Thanks. I'll be down in a minute."

She didn't eat much at dinner either. Aside from not having much of an appetite after her mind decided to replay her mother's death on repeat that afternoon, it was one of those supremely British meals. Which meant lots of gravy and puddings and heavy meat. The rock cakes she'd eaten earlier at Hagrid's were still sitting heavily in her stomach anyway. After dinner was over, she wandered until she found an empty classroom to summon Tsuchibue.

_"Hey, I saved this for you,"_ she said in her native language. She unwrapped a napkin with a buttered roll inside. The bird eagerly tore off chunks and wolfed them down.

_"What's up?" _he rumbled. _"Need me to deliver a message? Read your notes to you? Find something?" _

_"No. I need to pick something up from my sensei, and then I need your help making sure my letter to Sasuke is legible. Plus, I just don't want to be alone right now." _She curled up against the cold stone wall. The crow hopped onto her shoulder and began rearranging her hair.

_"What's wrong?" _he croaked.

_"Nothing. I just keep thinking of my parents today." _

_"It's good to think about them so they're not forgotten." _

_"That-," _she reached up and touched his glossy wing. _"You're right." _She stood suddenly and dusted her robes off. _"I don't have time to mope. Let's go. And, don't speak in front of my sensei. He knows too much about me already." _

Together they made their way down several flights of stairs toward the potions classroom, the air growing more frigid as they went. Tsuchibue sometimes glided alongside her, and sometimes clung to her shoulder. When they finally reached the correct door, she hesitated for the briefest moment.

What if the potion wasn't good enough? She'd have to find something else.

A rhythmic, metallic clanking rang dully through the door. She pulled it open, letting her senses expand through the doorway before stepping in.

The whimpering boy, Bigbottom? She wasn't sure what his name was. Right now he wasn't whimpering. He was sniffling as he chiseled away at the fossilized contents of his cauldron.

Professor Snape's silvery presence was at the far end of the room behind his desk. As she stepped into the room she could hear the scratch of a quill on parchment.

Bigbottom paused briefly in his chiseling. Tsuchibue's talons dug into her shoulder as she approached the desk. He sprang off her shoulder to glide across the classroom.

"Hello sir, I was wondering if you'd graded my potion yet."

She waited in silence as there was more quill scratching.

"You and Mr. Zabini produced a technically correct but underwhelming potion," he said. "I expect much better in the future."

She inclined her head. "Of course. May I have some back?"

"No. It is totally inadequate unless you're intending to heal a hangnail. You may have this instead." He pushed a bottle toward her. "This is a modified Wiggenweld potion. I do not teach this to first years, it is too volatile at certain stages and inevitably _someone_ would manage to blow their classmates up."

There was a shiver of chakra from the boy on the other side of the classroom.

"Thank you, sir." The vial was cool in her hand. She felt out the contents. The liquid inside was sort of syrupy in consistency.

"It won't work on every injury, but some it will correct completely. Others it may provide enough time to reach the hospital wing."

"What kinds will it not work on?"

"Some magical injuries. Certain creatures and spells require very specific treatments or counter curses to heal the injuries they inflict."

His attention was pulled away by a flare of chakra and bell-like clang. Sayuri flinched at the sudden sound.

He slammed his hands onto the desktop as he pushed himself out of his chair. "Mr. Longbottom I said _no magic_. Are you completely incapable of following any directions given to you?"

"B-but I didn't! This bird, it just came over and blasted it all out. I swear!" The Gryffindor's voice was watery and desperate, and Sayuri felt a tiny bit sorry for him.

She cleared her throat. "Tsuchibue probably thought he was helping. Sorry about that."

The bird's claws tapped on the rim of the cauldron as he pushed off and glided back to her shoulder.

Snape's voice was low and cold. "Since you did not complete your detention as assigned, you will be here tomorrow at 1 pm to wash the rest of the cauldrons. _By hand._"

"Yes sir," the boy said in a very small voice.

"Now both of you get out of my sight."

The boy tripped over himself in his scramble to get out the door. Sayuri followed at a walk, pausing at the door before slipping into the hallway.

"Thank you for the potion, sir."

The only sound of acknowledgement was a quiet _hnn_ that reminded her of Sasuke.

Out in the hallway, her hand went to the vial in her bag where she kept her parchment and things. The boy was sitting on the floor with his back against the wall, shivering.

"Excuse me, um, sorry about getting you another detention," she apologized. "My name is Sayuri."

"I'm N-Neville," he stammered. "It's alright. I wouldn't have finished by curfew anyway. Washing the cauldrons will be easier than trying to finish chipping the rest of that out all afternoon tomorrow."

"Oh, okay," she said. That made her feel a little better. "Do you know how to get to the Owlery?"

"Y-yeah," he said. "I need to get back to Gryffindor tower, it's on the way there. You can follow me."

The boy was so morose, she still felt bad for him. Snape was right though. He hadn't been able to blow anything up with that potion. "At least you didn't melt the floor this week," she said. "That's a little improvement anyway."

"I guess," the boy said. "I just wish I could do _anything_ right. It seems like no matter how hard I study, or how much I try everything goes wrong."

"Look, don't be sad. You just need a better strategy. It might be hard since Snape doesn't seem to like many Gryffindors, but try to find a potions partner he doesn't hate." _Someone not Harry_, she thought privately. "Someone that can make sure it won't blow up in your face or turn to cheese."

Neville considered this in silence for a moment. "That's a really good idea," he said slowly. "Maybe, I wonder if _Hermione_ would do it. She's brilliant. I'll bet she could help me."

"There you go!"

Eventually they reached a door on a smaller side hall. "Here's the Owlery," Neville said. "D-did you need any other help?"

"Nope, I got it. Thanks."

"Thanks for the advice," he breathed. "Maybe things will be better next week. I've got to go though, and you'd better hurry. It's almost curfew."

Sayuri went through the door and the rest of the way up to the little tower the owls stayed in on her own, Tsuchibue clinging to her shoulder. The sour odor of owl droppings stuck in the back of her throat, and she grimaced. Metallic screeches and trills rippled through the air around them.

_"Are you sure you want one of these stinky owls to deliver your message?"_ he growled. _"One of us crows would do a better job." _

_"No way. He'll think it's from Itachi, remember? Plus I need you available to help read my notes." _

_"Fine,_" huffed the crow. _"It's just humiliating you know."_

She ignored his remark, pulling out her quill and parchment. She quickly scribbled out the note she'd been mulling over in her head all day. Tsuchibue glanced it over and announced that it was legible, so she carefully wrapped it around the potion vial, folding over the ends so the glass was padded. Then she pulled a fine unicorn hair from her pocket. It had come off the foal while she was petting it that afternoon, and seemed like a waste to just leave it behind. Winding that carefully around the tiny package and tying it off, she inked Sasuke's name on the package and approached the owls.

"Excuse me, but I need a really strong owl who is up for a very long and difficult trip."

Several jostled forward, vying for position of strongest. She reached out, patting their satiny feathers and feeling them out before she settled on a medium sized bird of good weight with especially strong flight muscles. Tying the bundle securely to its leg, she nodded. "There. Take it to my cousin, Uchiha Sasuke. He lives in Konohagakure."

The owl hooted once, then with a rush of air and beating wings wheeled out of the owlery and into the chill air.

* * *

**Author's Note: **

**Snape overestimates Harry's capacity for rule breaking. He has only broken three rules worthy of expulsion at this point. XD**

**I was originally going to split this into two chapters, but want to get back to Team 7 so decided to get it all out in one update. Pretty sure Sayuri is going to sleep the entire weekend after this longest day ever is over. **

**In real life, we're completely surrounded by wildfires. There's a mandatory evacuation zone less than a mile from my house, and I've been preemptively evacuating our rabbits and goats to make sure everyone is out safely in case they expand the evacuation zone. It's all been extremely stressful, but I'm grateful the fire hasn't gotten here yet and hopeful that it won't. Getting to spend some time writing this fic has helped me keep my stress level manageable. I hope it helps someone else out there to read it, even if it's just a small thing that makes your day slightly better.**

**If you're a praying type of person, please spare some thoughts for the people in our communities who have had to abandon their homes or lost them completely to the wildfires. **


	21. Contact

Naruto and Sasuke hefted Kakashi-sensei's limp body between them, stumbling out of the marshy clearing they had battled in and back onto the hard packed clay road. The dappled green canopy of the forest bore no signs of their desperate fight against the demon mist swordsman, Momochi Zabuza. The only difference compared to before the ambush, was the eerie silence now that every bird for at least a mile had been frightened away.

Sasuke glanced down at Kakashi's head lolling between the white fabric of his forearm protectors as he gripped the back of his sensei's flak jacket. A mess of grey hair hid the scar bisecting sensei's left eye. It was obvious Kakashi had not been born with a sharingan.

Kakashi had better be ready to answer some questions once he woke up.

The battle with the mist swordsman had taken a lot out of everyone, but it seemed that for a non Uchiha, using the sharingan for long periods drained a person's chakra quickly. Witnessing how much it augmented his sensei's fighting style though, Sasuke couldn't wait for his own eyes to mature.

Once they did, he'd be one step closer to surpassing Itachi. To gaining the strength to get his revenge. The way he had frozen up at first under Zabuza's killing intent, he could _never_ let that happen again. If he couldn't fight under that kind of pressure he would never succeed in killing Itachi.

This was how jounin fought. This was what he needed to aspire toward, in order to kill Itachi.

"We're so lucky that hunter-nin came and finished him off," Sakura sighed, her body sagging against a tree. "Can you imagine if Kakashi-sensei had collapsed while Zabuza was still here?" Old Man Tazuna's grimace deepened and his wrinkled hand went to his throat. It wasn't hard to imagine that outcome.

"Hey Sasuke-teme," Naruto squinted up at the Uchiha with Kakashi's feet tucked under his armpits. "I wonder what's under Kakashi-sensei's mask."

Sasuke glared at him. "This isn't the time."

"But, look at him 'ttebayo. He would never know if we peeked. Aren't you a little bit curious?"

Fingers twitching nervously, Sakura's gaze went to their sensei's masked face. "Maybe he has more scars and that's why he covers it," she suggested.

"Or, what if it's beaver teeth?" Naruto asked. "Maybe he's super embarrassed about his face."

Sasuke shook his head. Why were his teammates so stupid? Part of him was a teeny bit curious, but the mystery of Kakashi's sharingan eye weighed much heavier at the moment.

"Do you think he has a mustache?" Sakura asked. "Would it be a big thick one? Or a little tiny mustache?"

Naruto sniggered, "I bet he could only grow a tiny baby mustache."

A soft gust of air caught Sasuke's attention. Naruto yelped and dropped Kakashi's legs in the mud, fumbling with a kunai as he hurled it at whatever rustled in the leaves overhead. Luckily, the kunai missed. A large pale owl with tawny wings burst out of the branches with a metallic, rasping screech and glared at Naruto.

"AAAHH! I'm so sorry owl!" Naruto yelped, pulling at his face in embarrassment.

"Idiot!" Sakura shouted, cuffing him around the head. "Didn't you learn anything from attacking that poor rabbit before?"

Sasuke's eyes narrowed. The bird had something wrapped around one leg. Lowering his sensei's shoulders to the ground with far more care than Naruto had taken, he stood straight and held an arm out for the bird. It landed delicately, encircling his forearms with wicked claws. Once it was settled it threw a piercing stare over its shoulder at Naruto.

"It's tame!" Tazuna breathed. "What's that tied on its leg?"

Carefully, Sasuke worked the little package loose. It was tied with a thin, golden thread that shone prettily in the dappled green light. Slipping it free, his eyes narrowed. The kanji scrawled on the paper read:

_Uchiha Sasuke_

The owl turned its heart-shaped face toward him and clacked its beak. "Sakura," he said sharply, "come take the owl so I can open this."

Cheeks flushing pink enough to match her hair, she stopped pounding on Naruto and hurried to his side. The owl stepped onto her outstretched arm. She whimpered when the bird's long talons pricked at her pale skin.

"Do you know who it's from?" Tazuna-san asked anxiously.

Ignoring everyone's questions and stares, Sasuke carefully peeled back the paper. Inside was a glass vial the size of his thumb. A thick silvery liquid swirled within, glinting and catching the light just as the golden thread had. He folded open the paper it had been wrapped in.

_Dear Sasuke,_

_My sensei made this medicine. If someone is injured, drinking it can heal their wounds. Please keep it with you in case it is ever needed._

_Also, please squish Fukumaru's pads for me. I miss him._

_Thinking of you always._

"It's not signed," Sakura said, peering over his shoulder. "Do you know who sent it?"

Biting his lip in irritation he deliberately ignored the pink haired girl. "Can you take a return message?" he asked the owl. The bird's neck feathers fluffed out and it chirruped.

"Hold on Sasuke-kun!" Sakura knelt to rummage through her knapsack even as her arm trembled under the sustained weight of the bird. "I've got some paper and a pencil."

Sasuke snatched the paper she tore from her journal. Carefully wrote a few lines, and addressed it to Sayuri. The owl leaned forward in anticipation and held out a leg for him to tie it to as he folded it up. "You know where to find her?" he asked the bird, wrapping a bit of wire securely around the animal's leg with letter attached.

The owl screeched in the affirmative, bobbing its pale face as it sprang off Sakura's arm and winged its way upward through the branches. Sasuke watched it leave, wishing he wasn't on a mission right now. Wishing he could follow it and find out where it was taking his message.

Where it had come from.

"What was that stuff it brought you, teme?" Naruto asked, rubbing at a fresh lump on his head.

He protectively enclosed the vial inside his fist. "Medicine."

"Hey, do you think it would help Kakashi-sensei if we gave some to him?" Naruto asked. "It's just, he's kinda heavy and it's still a long way to Old Man Tazuna's village."

"No way!" Sakura interrupted angrily. "Naruto, the letter said if someone is _injured_ it will heal them. Kakashi-sensei isn't injured, he's just exhausted! Plus how can we be sure who it's even from? It might be a trick. What if it's poison?"

As annoyed as Sasuke was by his teammate reading over his shoulder, he had to admit she made some good points. "We're not going to waste it on him," Sasuke said. "If you're too weak and tired to help carry him I'm sure Sakura can manage just fine."

Sakura's face immediately twisted into a look of panicked horror, but she didn't need to worry. His insults had the desired effect. Naruto's face turned bright red as he scrambled to throw Kakashi-sensei over his shoulders. "I'LL CARRY HIM BY MYSELF! I'M NOT WEAK OR TIRED!"

"Fine," Sasuke said. "Sakura, you stay near Tazuna-san. I'll keep watch while we walk."

"Who made you the captain?" Naruto complained.

"Just be quiet and listen to Sasuke," Sakura scolded. "And be careful! If you throw sensei around too much you could give him a head injury!"

Sasuke sighed as the other two devolved into yet another meaningless argument. Tazuna looked between them worriedly. He couldn't blame the old man. He'd be worried too if he had to depend on Sakura and Naruto for protection from rogue ninjas.

They'd be screwed if Zabuza wasn't already dead.

Folding the letter back around the vial, Sasuke slipped it into the very bottom of his weapon pouch.

If Sayuri had a sensei, that meant someone was looking after her. Someone was _teaching_ her. That meant she was likely safe. But, where was she? And why hadn't she made any effort to return to Konoha after all this time? It was obvious from the two letters he'd received that she was trying to conceal her identity from any outside party that might read them. She hadn't signed either one.

That meant she wanted to keep her contact with Sasuke secret. But from who?

The familiar sting of rage shot through him. Of course. _Of course!_ Sayuri's mother had been murdered right in front of her, just like his own parents had been slaughtered by Itachi. The village had never solved the crime. Sayuri must be afraid that whoever murdered her mother might intercept her letters. That they might discover she had survived. That was why she was being so cryptic.

She might even know who the murderer was.

He clenched his fist. He would never let them reach her. He'd find her and protect her. And once he learned who was responsible for her mother's death, he would kill that person too. When he was finished, Sayuri wouldn't have to be afraid to come home to Konoha.

He wouldn't be the only Uchiha anymore.

* * *

A little over one week after the school owl had departed with the healing potion, Sayuri was stunned to find the same owl before her at breakfast in the Great Hall.

"This is the first time you've gotten a letter," Draco remarked, putting down his own package unopened. "Who is it from?"

"Give me a second and I'll just read it out loud to everyone," she said, voice brimming with sarcasm. The bird was gulping sausages off a serving plate as if it hadn't eaten in days. She patted it down gingerly, paper crinkling on its right leg.

"Is that wire?" Blaise asked. "No, stop. Let me get it with my wand before you hurt it."

Gratefully, she let go of the bird and after a quick tap from Blaise and a mumbled spell, wire pieces clattered to the table. She carefully unrolled the paper. It was a small rectangle and ripped on one side as if it had been torn from a book.

"What language is it written in?" she asked Blaise.

"Looks like your potions notes. The paper's got a bunch of little hearts and flowers printed on it, looks a bit girly. Did you want me to use the _Pellegemanus_ charm on it?"

Sayuri bit her lip and nodded. Professor Flitwick had tried to teach it to her and she was getting better at it, but she wasn't willing to risk accidentally incinerating what was likely her first and only letter from Sasuke. Madam Pince had banned her from the library indefinitely after her latest attempt.

Blaise tried, several times in fact, but only the printed hearts and flowers raised up as if embossed. Otherwise the paper stayed as smooth as ever. Draco leaned over, still curious. "Maybe that spell only works on things written with proper ink. What is that stuff?"

"Looks like graphite," Blaise said. "My mum uses it for her artwork sometimes."

Chest tight with frustration, Sayuri folded the letter and slipped it into her bag. "Thanks for trying. I'll figure it out later."

After breakfast, she held her breath as she filed into the Defense Against the Dark Arts classroom with an assortment of other first years. The smell was something like a rotten onion deeply infused with garlic and a dash of goat turds. She could taste it. Back on the first day of Quirrel's lessons, she had decided to spend her defense classes pulling her chakra in tight and burning it in lieu of breathing air. Same technique any decent shinobi used for extended underwater activity.

So far she could manage 9 minute intervals before gagging on the next putrid lungful. She really needed to get more efficient at it.

Quirrel's stammering was more annoying than usual with the mystery of the letter weighing on her. She fantasized about what it might say. Had Sasuke written to her about his teammates? His missions? Was he less lonely now? Had he finally made some friends like she had? Had Itachi left him alone all this time?

Once class was dismissed she hurried out past her classmates, went around the corner, and slipped into an empty classroom. Crouching on the cold stone floor, she hurriedly summoned Tsuchibue and fumbled the letter out of her bag for him to see. The bird cleared his throat before reciting in a startlingly clear imitation of Sasuke's voice;

_"Sayuri,_

_Thanks for the medicine._

_I'm outside the village on my first C rank mission so maybe it will come in handy._

_Fukumaru got fat. When can we meet? I'll bring him to you so you can squish his pads yourself._

_Sasuke"_

Her heart pounded in her ears. Hearing Sasuke's voice, even if it was just coming out of a dumb bird was jarring. Sucking in a jagged breath, she squeezed back tears._ Something so dumb shouldn't affect me like this,_ she thought. _Why is it making me cry?_

"H-how can you sound just like him," she croaked.

"Crows are naturally good at mimicking voices," he said, falling back to his much deeper natural voice. "I thought you knew that."

"But how do you know what he sounds like?" she hiccoughed.

The crow sighed, then hesitantly reminded her of his _other_ summoner and the surveillance they'd been instructed to carry out.

_That makes sense,_ she thought bitterly.

The doorknob to the room twisted, and she froze. Hating not knowing who was about to walk through the door, she snatched the letter and stuffed it into her pocket.

Draco's soft, fluid chakra shimmered with curiosity as he stepped through the doorway. The longer she spent around him the more it reminded her of an icy stream. Colorless, cold, and unpleasant to step in if you weren't paying attention. But also unexpectedly refreshing at times.

"Sayuri, what are you doing in here? Are you crying?" he asked. "Did someone do something to you? If they did, tell me who and I'll get Crabbe and Goyle to pound them for you."

"No, nothing like that," she said, picking up her bag off the floor. "I-I'm just happy."

"Happy," he deadpanned, as if he didn't believe her. "This, is happy?"

"Yeah." She cleared her throat. "I just found out my cat is alive. All this time I thought he was dead, so I'm happy."

"Is that what your letter says?"

She nodded numbly, not trusting herself to speak.

"Did your bird read it to you? He can _read?_"

"Well yeah. Of course he can."

"Right," Draco muttered. "Of course a bloody bird knows how to read. How silly of me. Are you going to get your cat back then?" he asked.

Sayuri's shoulders sagged. "He's really far away," she said in a rough voice. "And the situation makes arranging transportation difficult."

"Well if you want, my owl is really strong. Much better than the school owls or even your crow I'll bet. He can do international deliveries and carry heavy things so even if your cat is a fatty I'm sure he could get it to Hogwarts."

The mental image of a rotund Fukumaru being carried by an oversized owl for several days made a wavering smile pull at one corner of her mouth. "Thanks. I don't know what I'm going to do yet exactly."

"Any time," Draco said carelessly. "If that won't work, I'm sure my father could arrange something. Is he in Japan? My father knows everyone at the ministry and could easily get an international portkey approved. Or even arrange a courier."

"I'll let you know if I need help with it." She wiped her nose on her sleeve. "Ugh, sorry."

"It's all right," Draco said. "Girls cry a lot. My mum cries all the time. She not unhappy mind you! It's just, even when she sees something like a butterfly she thinks is pretty she'll cry about that." He shifted on his feet awkwardly. "No offense, but girls are weird. Here, take this. Don't use your sleeve that's disgusting."

He nudged a soft handkerchief into her hand. Sayuri blew her nose loudly into it.

"Just keep it," Draco said. "I have plenty. You should come down for lunch now instead of sitting in here. Goyle said it smelled like they were cooking corned beef earlier today. My mum always feels better if she eats something after a good cry."

"You go on ahead," she sighed. "I'll be there in a few minutes."

"Suit yourself." The doorknob creaked, and heavy door groaned as he hefted it open. He didn't bother to shut it behind him so the sound of his footfalls echoed down the corridor as he left.

"I get lunch too?" Tsuchibue asked. His English was slowly improving.

"Sure. Just behave yourself."

She gathered her bag and pushed herself off the floor, Tsuchibue settling on her shoulder. The hallway was blessedly quiet, until a familiar, terrible smell wafted around a corner. Professor Quirrel soon followed, with a startled yelp and exaggerated gasp when he came upon her.

"S-s-s-sorry," he managed to get out. "I-I don't like b-b-birds."

Tsuchibue sprang off her shoulder and flew at the teacher, feathers rustling as he flapped and cawed in his face. If Quirrel wasn't so annoying and his very presence wasn't wrecking her appetite she might have felt a little sorry for the man. He screamed in a sort of gurgling voice and ran the opposite direction down the corridor.

"He not like birds?" Tsuchibue huffed as he landed on her shoulder again. "Well he smell like trash. His chakra trash too."

Sayuri realized then, that she'd been so concerned with her ability to breathe around the man that she hadn't paid that much attention to other aspects of his presence. It didn't help that instead of spreading her chakra out during his lessons, she was drawing it in and burning through it to avoid breathing the foul air.

Then again, he didn't seem horrible at all or have any odor to speak of when she and Harry had met him in Diagon Alley before school started. Why would he suddenly become more gross?

"Well, I'm glad I haven't paid close attention," she said. "I'd probably start barfing in class if it's _that_ bad."

Tsuchibue laughed, and she turned her thoughts back to the letter.

_My cat is alive. For sure this time, he's really alive. Sasuke is alive. They're both okay._

Briefly she let herself fantasize about what it would be like to have Fukumaru at the castle. They were allowed to have cats as pets after all. She wondered what it would be like to have Sasuke there. Jiji would let Sasuke stay with them at The Hog's Head, it wasn't even a question. He was gruff, but when it was something really important he always indulged her.

Hogsmeade was safe. It was quiet. They could restore the Uchiha clan here, in this peaceful country. Where people didn't have to worry about getting ambushed by bandits while walking down the road, or blown up by wizards from rival countries or villages. Where children were allowed to grow up soft. To be children. She couldn't help but notice that even though their country had recently endured some type of war, her classmates were still innocent. Unlike her classmates at The Academy in Konoha. Even kids like Harry, who had been directly hurt by it. Adults here seemed to try extra hard to shelter them. There was no emphasis on training them to take part in future conflicts. Quirrel's defense class was disappointingly useless. While that was extremely inconvenient for training toward her goals, it was also strange and wonderful in a way.

Here, nobody expected children to kill. It seemed even the adults weren't burdened with that kind of responsibility.

Sasuke would be safe from Danzo. Nobody would think to steal his eyes. Itachi wouldn't know how to get here, so Sasuke couldn't be drawn into whatever shitty plans his older brother had for him.

How would she bring him and Fukumaru here safely though? She could send Miu but- damn that Itachi! Sasuke would never climb onto a crow summon and let it carry him away. He'd think it was Itachi's bird.

The mouthwatering smell of corned beef signaled her approach to the Great Hall. It pushed all thoughts of Quirrel's unappetizing classroom far from her mind, and her stomach rumbled. Maybe Draco was right. Maybe she'd feel better after eating something.

* * *

**Author's Note: Sorry for the lag in updates. My middle child had a really intense brain surgery to remove a bleeding lesion last week. It is not cancer! Hooray! Also the surgery went super well and she is recovering better than anyone expected. So, there's some happy news if anyone needed some.  
**  
**I wanted to include a third scene in this update, but it will have to go into the next round. Back to the Land of Waves!**

**If you could save any character who died in either Harry Potter or Naruto, who would it be? **


	22. Reading Lessons

Haku slipped into a sleeveless pink yukata and sandals, glancing over at the swordsman's still form. Zabuza-san had overexerted himself far too much. He'd nearly been killed by the copy ninja.

If Haku hadn't been there to intervene, chakra exhaustion or one of the Copy Ninja's thousand jutsus would have claimed him.

They were out of soldier pills. He would gather some herbs to make more. Help Zabuza recover his depleted chakra more quickly in case they had another encounter with the Konoha ninjas anytime soon. Zabuza _must_ be at his peak if that happened. Next time, Haku wouldn't allow him to face them alone.

Stepping out of the hidden structure, soft moss muffled his sandaled footfalls. As always, the forest was refreshing. The crisp air, the white sunlight filtering through layers of brilliant green leaves and soft fog. The leaves of the plants were plump and glossy with moisture. Haku journeyed a short distance through a strip of forest in search of the herbs he needed.

One of the Konoha ninja, a boy in an orange jumpsuit, lay unconscious on the ground. Birds landed on his lifeless body, pecking around in the nearby dirt.

Haku sucked in a sharp breath. They shouldn't be this near his hideout. And why was this boy all alone? Where were his teammates? Zabuza was vulnerable right now. What if the others found Zabuza while they were separated?

Birds fluttered out of Haku's way. Kneeling over the boy, Haku could feel his chakra. See the faint rise and fall of his chest. He wasn't dead. Haku's fingertips gripped the cool metal of the senbon hidden in his clothing.

_Should I just- take care of him now?_

His thought was interrupted by a groan from the younger boy. Relaxing his grip on the needles, Haku gently shook the boy's shoulder.

"Hey wake up. If you sleep out here you'll catch a cold."

The Konoha ninja blinked up at him slowly with refreshingly naive eyes. Wide and blue as an unclouded sky. Eyes that hadn't yet seen death.

Not like his own.

"Ungh. Hi, what are you doing out here?" the boy mumbled, rubbing dirt from his eyes.

Haku didn't introduce himself. It was best not to get too attached. He smiled warmly at the boy though. "Gathering medicinal herbs."

"Really?" The boy peered at the plants around them as if noticing them for the first time. "My name is Uzumaki Naruto! Can I help? "

"All right." Haku cupped a white flower in one hand. "This is _kakumakusa_. I need some of the roots.

"Hey, since you know a lot about medicinal herbs do you know about medicines too?" Naruto asked, reaching for a handful of honeysuckle stems.

"I know a little."

"Someone sent us a bottle of medicine, but we don't know if it's really medicine," Naruto said. He rubbed at his disheveled yellow hair. "Eh, it's kind of hard to explain. My teammate's friend is missing, but sometimes he gets messages and things like this medicine that say they're from her. Sasuke believes it _is_ her though. He has to. His goal is to find her so he can protect her."

"Sasuke must be truly strong then." Haku smiled down at the herbs he'd gathered in his basket so far. "His friend must be too, if she cherishes him enough to send things like that."

Naruto immediately blanched, whirling to face him. "Hey! Don't underestimate me! I'm strong too!"

Haku laughed. "I'm sure you are, but do you have someone precious to protect? The greatest strength comes only when you are protecting someone you cherish."

The blond looked down at his hands in wonderment, suddenly clenching a fist. "I-is that so? Then, I'm going protect _everyone!_ The more important people I have, the stronger I'll be right? To the hokage every person in the village is precious. So _that_ must be why the strongest person in the village is the hokage."

"That's very wise," Haku said with a soft smile. He hoped they could complete their mission while avoiding another fight with the Konoha ninjas. Naruto's optimism, his innocence was refreshing. Haku didn't want to steal that from him, but, no matter how endearing their opponents were he would never allow any harm to befall Zabuza-san.

Even if it meant sacrificing this sunny, pure-hearted boy.

Haku pushed himself to his feet. "Thank you for your help, Naruto-kun. I have enough herbs now."

"Oh!" Naruto scrambled up too. "If, if I bring that medicine would you be able to tell us if it's safe?"

"I don't know if I'll be coming back here," Haku said. "It's probably for the best if we don't meet again."

"_WHAT!_" the blond yelped. "But, ya know, I kinda thought it would be nice to see you. I mean, you're really pretty. Even prettier than Sakura-chan! And you're nice too." Naruto straightened his shoulders suddenly. "I know we'll see each other again. It's a feeling, _'ttebayo._"

Haku bit back laughter, his mouth curling in a smirk. "Just so you know, I'm a boy." He enjoyed the exaggerated look of horror and disbelief arresting the younger boy's face.

"B-but _how?_" Naruto stammered.

"I just am," he slid the basket handle over a forearm and pushed himself to his feet. "Don't be too sad," he said, throwing a backward glance over his shoulder at Naruto as he walked from the clearing. "I'm already attached to someone else anyway."

Tucking a stray honeysuckle vine into the basket, he thought of his beloved mentor. How underneath the gruff treatment and harsh words had been a steady supply of warm food even when it meant Zabuza didn't have enough to fill his own stomach. His mentor had justified it saying that Haku would be a useless tool if he wasn't fed enough to develop properly.

The sheer number of hours Zabuza had invested in Haku's training, the growth he'd experienced. The knowledge he'd gained about the human body, the many ways to disable or kill a person, all thanks to his mentor. The care he received at Zabuza-san's bloodstained hands was far greater than what he'd ever experienced at the hands of his own father.

His father, the other villagers, all impaled on shards of ice.

He hadn't meant to do it. He really hadn't. And even though it meant he survived their attempt to murder him, he often regretted it. He hadn't been strong enough to save his mother in time. But wasn't weak enough to die alongside her like he deserved.

It wasn't until Zabuza found him that he stopped surviving and began to live again. He would dedicate his life to Zabuza. To achieving Zabuza's dream of becoming Mizukage. To changing the bloody mist village into something better so that the children there could have eyes full of innocence, just like the Konoha ninja he'd just met.

_Zabuza-san, don't worry. I won't let myself get attached to them. You're the only one I cherish. _

* * *

Sayuri gingerly pushed the door to Professor McGonagall's office open. The older witch was seated behind her desk, and another student sat in a chair practically shivering and crackling with excitement.

"We've been waiting for quite some time now," McGonagall said sharply. "Do try to be a little more punctual in the future. Now, I must say that while I understand your circumstances pose unique obstacles to completing your assignments, that's no excuse for not turning in your written work. It's clear from what you have scraped together that you haven't been going over the textbook. Our lecture time in class is limited, which is why it is necessary for you to learn the material in the assigned text. In this class, moving forward without understanding the mechanics of what you are doing is _dangerous._ That's why I've asked Miss Granger here to help. She's one of my Gryffindors and the brightest witch of your year as far as I'm concerned."

Sayuri cautiously inclined her head in the direction of the other student. The girl had chakra that buzzed and hummed with barely suppressed activity. Sayuri fought the urge to flee. It didn't feel quite like insects. But, at the same time it kind of did. More like bees than beetles though.

She took a deep breath through her nose.

_It's_ not _beetles. Calm down._

"Yes, Professor," Sayuri said.

"Now, please describe exactly the issues you are having with your studies?"

"Well, Professor Flitwick taught the Slytherins a charm that makes text so I can feel the writing with my fingers. So that's great, only I was never taught to read English. My housemates help me as much as they can, but it's exhausting for them to read all of it out loud for every assignment."

"Miss Granger, do you think you can handle tutoring Miss Uchiha in basic reading?"

"Certainly. We could start with the alphabet today, it is simple enough." The voice coming from the other student was almost like a higher pitched echo of the transfiguration professor's.

"I suggest you get started now," McGonagall said. "You may use my classroom, as it's currently unoccupied."

The other girl hopped to her feet, hefting a large bag onto her shoulder. Sayuri tried not to sigh too deeply in front of them. She really had better things to do with her time. It wasn't like she was the only student who couldn't read well. She was just the most obviously deficient.

They left the professor's office, door swinging shut behind them as they went.

"Do you need to hold my arm or anything?" Granger chirped. "I can lead you there."

"I know where the classroom is." Sayuri rubbed at the sides of her head, wondering how much trouble she would get in if she ditched Granger and made a run for Hagrid's instead. Playing with a baby unicorn sounded a million times more appealing than this.

"Have you been blind your entire life? Or is your blindness acquired?" Granger asked in the same shrill, clipped voice.

The sting of irritation prickled at the back of Sayuri's neck. "What difference does it make? If I can't see, I can't see."

"Well it _does_ make a difference because if I describe how something looks you'll know what I'm talking about if you _have_ seen something similar before."

"Whatever. It's acquired. How do you prefer to be addressed?"

"Hermione," the girl said simply. "And you?"

"Sayuri is fine."

They walked in silence the rest of the way to the transfiguration classroom. Hermione held the door open for her, and sniffed in a superior sort of way as she led Sayuri toward the desks. "All right then. Let's start with the alphabet. There's a little song to help remember the names of the letters. I'll write them down as I sing, then we can use that charm you mentioned to make the paper more tactile so you can feel them. Is it the _Pellegemanus_ charm?"

"That's the one," Sayuri said. She cringed inwardly, hoping she wouldn't be expected to sing the song too as Hermione took out her quill and began scratching out letters while chanting nonsense sounds in an overly cheerful tune. Her voice wandered a little as it ascended and descended, the buzzing of her chakra intensifying as she grew more focused on what she was doing.

Sayuri _really_ wanted Tsuchibue there to learn this as well, but it was too risky summoning him in front of the Gryffindor. She asked way too many questions about everything. Plus wizards were weirdly touchy about using blood to cast spells. It didn't make much sense to her, but Hermione seemed like the type to ask a million questions about it and go to a teacher with what she found out so it wasn't worth the trouble today. She'd just have to make sure to summon the crow beforehand next time.

Luckily the song was short. Hermione pulled out her wand and cast the charm on the paper.

"Put your hand here now, this letter is Ay." A fizzling hand darted out and touched Sayuri's wrist. She was expecting the contact, but it still made her startle and jump badly.

"Honestly, why are you so jumpy? Does it have to do with not being able to see your surroundings? Would it be better if I warned you next time?"

"No," Sayuri snapped. "It has to do with _your_ magic. It feels like I'm sitting next to a beehive that's about to explode."

"It feels like _what?_" she said faintly. Then after a brief pause Hermione jumped up from her seat, her voice penetrating. "Wait, you mean you can _FEEL_ other people's _magic?_ _How?_"

Sayuri clapped her hands over her ears. "Ow! Calm down. And yes."

The Gryffindor did everything but calm down. If anything, she grew even more intense. "Are you an empath then? Can you feel people's emotions too? It makes complete sense that if you had some natural ability as an empath it would grow stronger to compensate for your vision loss. This is _amazing_. That's a really rare ability you know! I read in a book about wandlore that Mr. Ollivander is one, I definitely think it's true after meeting him. Did you feel anything strange about him when you got your wand?"

At that moment, Sayuri decided she would never, ever tell Hermione about the crow's realm or their waterfall.

"Look. All I know is some people are overwhelming. Have you ever tried meditating to calm your magic down? Because I think it would help you a lot. It should help you with your control and ability to cast spells too."

That got Hermione's attention. "How do I do it?"

"It's simple. Just sit like this," Sayuri pulled her robes up enough to position herself crosslegged on her chair. "Then you put your hands like this. And you sit quietly, and you feel your magic running through your body and you just focus on it."

"That's all? How long do I do it for?"

"My mother used to have me meditate for an hour every morning and evening. I just do it when I can't sleep now, so don't really keep track anymore." Sayuri bit her lip and let her hands fall into her lap. "After you can focus on it for long periods of time then you can try more stuff with it."

"That's such a long time! But, I'll try my best. Your mother is a witch then? I didn't know meditation was used magically. Is she an empath too? My parents are muggles, I'm the first witch in my family."

Sayuri's shoulders drooped. As far as she knew, neither tou-san or kaa-san were sensor types. But maybe they just never told her. "I don't know. Both my parents died, so I can't ask them. They were both magical though."

If Sayuri was honest with herself, she was surprised at Hermione's tenacity and sudden interest in meditation. None of her dorm-mates had shown any interest in it when she was sitting on her bed doing it. They mostly left her to herself, and that suited her just fine. Maybe the Gryffindor would actually become bearable to spend time with if she practiced it faithfully.

Maybe she'd feel less like an excited cluster of bees.

"Oh no! That is awful. I'm so sorry for bringing it up. And, I won't touch your arm again. I read that physical contact can be overwhelming for empaths."

Sayuri didn't bother to correct her on that point. She honestly wasn't even sure if an empath was remotely the same thing as a sensor-nin. Instead she reached for the parchment, and began tracing the nearest letter with her fingertips. It made an oval shape.

"That letter is Oh. It's in the middle of the alphabet. You'll want to start out a little higher on the page."

Verbally, the Gryffindor guided her up and to the left toward the letter Ay and walked her back through all of them. All twenty six letters. It was excruciating. English was written backwards compared to her native language. She'd have to get used to reading from left to right now.

"I did get a reading primer from Flourish and Blotts," Sayuri said. "But there wasn't anyone to tell me what the different letters are supposed to be called or sound like. Jiji- I mean, my gramps doesn't know how to read really. Or that's what he says anyway."

"Oh, that's so sad!" Hermione said, stricken. "You should bring it to our next meeting and I'll go through it with you. We should probably meet more than once per week or you won't be able to read until after Christmas though."

Sayuri suppressed a groan. She really, _really_ needed to work on that genjutsu for Captain Flint if she was going to convince him to teach her to fly.

"What do you think about Tuesday afternoon? We can meet in the library," Hermione said.

"Um, I guess that's a good day. But, we should meet somewhere else. Madam Pince banned me from the library."

_"WHAT!"_ shrieked Hermione. "_WHAT_ did you _DO?"_

_"_I kind of set a book on fire," she muttered into her hands very fast, dreading the reaction it was bound to provoke.

Hermione did not disappoint.

* * *

**Author's Note: Kakumakusa is a traditional Japanese herb also known as Japanese Goldthread. It's a pretty little white flower, and I thought it suited Haku nicely.**

**I've got plans for Hermione. Buahahaha. If anyone has any stuff or characters or things you'd like to see, or things that are happening that you like, just let me know in the comments. **

**We're in the midst of moving out of state so this update isn't as long as usual, but working at this is helping me stay sane. Thank you for the get well wishes for my kid's surgery! She's doing super well. It was honestly life changing for her in a very positive way, the surgeon actually cried when he saw how much better she was doing at her 2 week checkup because it was a risky but necessary procedure and he wasn't sure how much it might set her back. **


End file.
